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PRESENTED BY 

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CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY 



ADAM CLARKE, LL.D., F 



SELECTED 

FROM HIS PUBLISHED AND UNPUBL 

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SYSTEMATICALLY ARRANGED : 




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ITH A LIFE OF THE |AUt£3r: 

T i ■ m ■ i ii ' ■ 



BY SAMUEL DUNN. 



That man is not the best theologian who is the greatest disputant, but 
he who exhibits an exemplary life himself, and who teaches others to be 
exemplary in their lives. In things necessary to salvation, let every man 
become his own theologian.— J. A. Turretine. 



NEW-YORK : 

PUBLISHED BY T. MASON AND G. LANE, 

FOR THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH, AT THE CONFERENCE OFFICEj 
200 MULBERRY -STREET. 

/. Collord, Printer. 
1840. 



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Gift 
Judge a nc! Mrs. Isaac R.Hltt 
July 6,1931 



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ADVERTISEMENT 

TO 

CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



For some years before the lamented death of Dr. 
Clarke, he was repeatedly solicited to collect his rich 
and ample materials, and give to the world a Biblical 
Dictionary ; and Theological Institutes, or a System of 
Christian Theology, in one or two portable and cheap 
volumes. He acknowledged that each of these was a 
great desideratum. He felt strongly inclined to prepare 
them, and even made a beginning. In one of his letters 
he writes : — " I have laid the foundation of a Biblical 
Dictionary." In another he says : — " I may possibly 
write some Institutes ; but I shall put my Homer into 
a nutshell." On another occasion he observed : " If 
you were stationed in the south, and would assist me, I 
could do many things, but my eyes will not now bear 
any intense application." Such an appointment never 
took place ; and before the worthy doctor had proceeded 
far, he was called hence. Had he accomplished his ob- 
ject, he would doubtless have produced a volume de- 
serving a place in every Christian library. If it be 
inquired what induced me to attempt to supply his lack; 
I answer, my strong affection for the man ; my high ad- 
miration of his writings ; my deep conviction that such 
a volume would probably prove a blessing to many ; and 
I may perhaps, in proof of the doctor's confidence and 
affection, be allowed to refer to the following passage in 
one of his letters, which to me is sufficiently affecting : 
" O that my strength were as in days that are past ! 
While writing, it seems as if whispered to me, 'Your 
time is at hand — Samuel Dunn shall be your proxy in 
my work.' This is enough !" Though painfully con- 
scious of great inability, I have " done what I could." 
Others will judge of the manner in which the part of 
selecting and systematizing has been executed. 



4 ADVERTISEMENT TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 

That this mannal will be found useful for the purpose 
of reference, to those individuals who possess the doc- 
tor's other works ; and that those who possess them not 
will be induced, from this specimen, to procure them as 
soon as possible, is, perhaps, not an unreasonable ex- 
pectation. The unrivalled Commentary, which is now 
in course of publication in an elegant and cheap form, — 
with " multitudinous emendations and corrections from 
the author's own and last hand," — I should like to see in 
every family, from the Norman to the Shetland Isles. 

While I indulge the hope that the short Life in this 
volume will be acceptable to many readers, I have great 
pleasure in stating that Mrs. Smith, of Stoke Newing- 
ton, the amiable and accomplished " member of the 
family," to whom the public is so greatly indebted for 
the preservation of such valuable materials, is preparing 
a cheap edition of the life of her distinguished father. 

Tadcaster, April 9th, 1835. 



SECOND EDITION. 

Grateful for the favourable manner in which the first 
edition of the "Christian Theology" has been re- 
ceived by the public, I have endeavoured to render the 
second more worthy of general approval, and of the 
great and good man from whose works it has been 
compiled 

Samuel Dunn. 

May 1th, 1835. 



CONTENTS TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



Page 

Life of the Author -------- 7 

I.— The Scriptures 47 

II.— God - 63 

III.— The Attributes of God - 66 

IV.— The Trinity - - - 81 

V.— Man 83 

VI— Christ 106 

VII. — Repentance 122 

VIIL— Faith - - - 129 

IX. — Justification -------- 138 

X. — Regeneration -------- 146 

XL— The Holy Spirit 149 

XII.— Entire Sanctification - - - - - ' - 182 

XIIL— The Moral Law 209 

XIV.— Public Worship 226 

XV.— Prayer - - - - 229 

XVI.— Praise 242 

XVIL— The Christian Church 249 

XVIII.— Baptism 253 

XIX.— The Lord's Sapper 256 

XX.— Husband and Wife 262 

XXL— Parents and Children 267 

XXII.— Masters and Servants 281 

XXIII.— Rulers and Subjects 283 

XXIV.— Rich and Poor 287 

XXV.— Ministers and People 292 

XXVI.— Good and bad Angels 340 

XXVII.— Temptations 347 

XXVIII.— Afflictions 350 

XXIX.— Providence 357 

XXX.— Apostacy 360 

XXXI.— Death - - - 367 

XXXII.— Judgment 370 

XXXIIL— Hell 372 

XXXIV.— Heaven 376 

XXXV.— General Principles 380 



6 CONTENTS Tt) CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 

MISCELLANEOUS. 

Knowledge, 386 — Happiness, 390 — Communion of Saints, 393 — 
Fasting, Conscience, 396 — Dancing, 399 — Dress, 401 — Dreams, 403 — 
Ghosts, 404— Tobacco, 404 — Wesley, 410— Methodism, 411— Shet- 
land Isles, 413 — Sunday Schools, 420 — Schism, Lust of Power, Politi- 
cal Party-spirit, 421 — Friendship, 422 — Flattery, Self-interest, Going 
to Law, 423 — Suretyship, Usury, Slavery, 424 — Parable, Miracle, Mil- 
lennium, 425— Time, 426. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



LIFE OF ADAM CLARKE, LL.D., F.A.S. 

Adam Clarke, from whose voluminous writings the 
selections in this volume have been made, was born in 
the village of Moybeg, near Colerain, in the north of 
Ireland. He informed me, a short time before his death, 
that he had never been able to ascertain the year of his 
birth, his mother asserting that he was born in 1760, 
while his father contended that it was in 1763. Mr. 
John Clarke, Adam's father, was a person of very 
respectable literary attainments ; he was educated with 
a view to the church, and studied successively at 
Edinburgh and Glasgow, where he took his degree of 
a. m., and afterward entered a sizer of Trinity College, 
Dublin, at a time when classical merit alone could gain 
such an admission. He was of English extraction, and 
Mrs. Clarke of Scottish. They had two sons and five 
daughters. 

Adam was three years younger than his brother 
Tracy, and was by no means a spoiled child. He was 
always corrected when he deserved it, and was early 
inured to hardship. For this he was ever thankful, and 
used to say, " My heavenly Father saw that I was 
likely to meet with many rude blasts in journeying 
through life, and he prepared me in infancy for the lot 
his providence destined for me ; so that, through his 
mercy, I have been enabled to carry a profitable child- 
hood up to hoary hairs. He knew that I must walk 
alone through life, and therefore set me on my feet right 
early, that I might be prepared by long practice for the 
work I was appointed to perform." When about five 
years of age, he took the small pox in the natural way ; 
but, though covered with pustules from head to foot, he 
was in the habit of stealing away from his very warm 
bed, whenever an opportunity presented itself, and run- 
ning naked into the open air. By adopting this " coal 



8 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

regimen" he had a merciful termination of the disorder, 
and escaped without a single mark. 

Mr. Clarke kept an English and classical school, and 
also held a small farm. This was cultivated by his sons, 
Adam and Tracy, one of whom attended to the farm, 
and the other at the school, alternately, during the day ; 
and thus they shared between them the instruction 
which one boy in ordinary circumstances receives. They 
endeavoured to supply this defect by each, on leaving 
school, rehearsing to the other whatever he had on that 
day learned. 

Adam was rather a dull boy, and was about eight 
years of age before he was capable of " putting vowels 
and consonants together." Having on one occasion 
failed again and again in his attempts to commit his task 
to memory, he threw down the book in despair ; when 
the threats of his teacher, who told him he should be a 
beggar all his days, together with the jeers of the other 
scholars, roused him as from a lethargy : he felt as if 
something had broken within him ; — his memory in a 
moment was all light. " What !" said he to himself, 
" shall I ever be a dunce, and the butt of these fellows' 
insults ?" He resumed his book, conquered his task, 
speedily went up, and repeated it without missing a 
word, and proceeded with an ease he had never known 
before. He soon became passionately fond of reading. 
Into a wood near the school he oft retired, and there 
read the Eclogues and the Georgics of Virgil, with 
living illustrations of them before his eyes. He also 
amused himself with making hymns, and versifying the 
Psalms of David, and other .portions of the sacred 
volume. He soon conquered the whole of the heathen 
mythology and biography. Of Littleton's Classical 
Dictionary he made himself complete master. 

When but six years old, young Clarke was the subject 
of religious impressions. One day, as he and another 
little boy, with whom he was very intimate, sat upon a 
bank, they entered into conversation on the dreadful 
nature of eternal punishment. They were so affected 
with the thoughts that they wept bitterly ; and prayed 
to God to forgive their sins, making mutual promises of 
amendment. Adam made known his feelings to his 
mother, and told her that he hoped in future to use no 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 9 

bad words, and always to obey his parents. She was 
deeply affected, and encouraged him and prayed for him. 
His parents were of different denominations ; his father 
being a Churchman, while his mother was a Presby- 
terian, though not a Calvinist. To her he chiefly owed 
his early religious knowledge, and even his early religious 
impressions. It was her practice, especially on the 
Lord's day, to read to her children, catechize them, and 
to sing and pray with them. 

On one occasion, Adam having disobeyed his mother, 
she immediately flew to the Bible and opened on Prov. 
xxx, 17, which she read and commented on in the most 
awful manner : " The eye that mocketh at his father, 
and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the 
valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat 
it." He was cut to the heart, thinking the words were 
immediately sent from heaven ! He went out into the 
field much distressed, and was musing on this terrible 
denunciation of the divine displeasure, when the hoarse 
croak of a raven sounded to his conscience an alarm 
more terrible than the cry of fire at midnight. He 
looked up, and soon perceived this most ominous bird ; 
and actually supposing it to be the raven of which the 
text spoke, coming to pick out his eyes, he clapped his 
hands on them with the utmost speed and trepidation, 
and ran toward the house as fast as his state of salutary 
fright and perturbation would permit, that he might 
escape the impending vengeance ! 

He was sent by his parents to a singing school, where, 
after a while, he received instructions in dancing as well 
as music. Of this seductive art he soon became exceed- 
ingly fond ; and says that he found it to be a perverting 
influence, an unmixed moral evil ; and, to his death, on 
all proper occasions, he lifted up his voice against this 
branch of fashionable education. 

In the year 1777, the Methodist preachers visited the 
parish in which the Clarke family resided. Adam went 
to hear them ; and, under their preaching, especially 
under that of Mr. Thomas Barber, his mind became 
enlightened to see his danger, and he earnestly desired 
to flee from the wrath to come. His former evil courses 
were abandoned, his old companions forsaken, and he 
began to meet in class. After a long night of sorrow, 

1* 



10 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 

the day of deliverance drew near ; and never shall I 
forget the feeling with which, about ten years ago, 
he related this part of his religious experience in a party 
of friends, among whom were several young persons not 
decidedly religious, for whose benefit, as he informed 
me afterward, he then entered so largely into the 
circumstances that attended his conversion. He de- 
scribed the field to which he went with a conscience 
heavily burdened with guilt, the spot on which he 
kneeled and wrestled with God in prayer till his strength 
was exhausted. The heavens appeared as brass ; he 
found no access to the throne of grace. Concluding 
that there was no mercy for him, he at last rose in 
despair, intending "to cease the agonizing strife." On 
retiring from the place he heard, or thought he heard, 
a voice, which said to him, " Try Jesus !" He was not 
disobedient, but immediately went back to the same 
spot, there called upon Jesus, and his sorrow was 
instantly turned into joy. A glow of happiness seemed 
to thrill through his whole frame ; all guilt and condem- 
nation were gone. He examined his conscience, and 
found it no longer a register of sins against God. He 
looked to heaven, and all was sunshine. He searched 
for his distress, but could not find it. His heart was 
light, his physical strength and his animal spirits re- 
turned, and he could, more nimbly than ever, bound like a 
roe. He felt a sudden transition from darkness to light, 
from guilt and oppressive fear to confidence and peace. 
He could now draw nigh to God with more confidence 
than he ever could to his earthly father : he had free- 
dom of access, and he had freedom of speech. 

With this gladness of soul he also received great 
intellectual enlargement. He could prosecute his lite- 
rary studies with much greater ease. He now learned 
more in one day than formerly he was able to do in one 
month. His mind became enlarged to take in any thing 
useful. He saw that religion was the gate to true 
learning and science ; and soon began, in addition to his 
other pursuits, to apply himself to astronomy, natural 
philosophy, and the mathematics. 

His parents at first designed him for the church, and 
afterward for the medical profession ; but the narrow- 
ness of their pecuniary resources presented innumerable 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE 01 CLARKE. H 

obstacles, which they were unable to surmount. It was 
then concluded that he should become a schoolmaster; 
but for this he had no inclination. He was at last sent 
to Mr. Francis Bennett, a linen merchant, of Colerain, 
a kinsman of his parents, who had proposed to take him 
on advantageous terms. 

It should here be mentioned that the subject of this 
memoir, in his boyhood, had two very narrow escapes 
from sudden death : the one was a severe fall from a 
horse, when a sack of grain, which he had been unable 
to balance on the animal, came down with all its force 
upon him ; and, his back happening to come in contact 
with a pointed stone, he was taken up apparently dead. 
In about four-and- twenty hours he was conveyed home, 
and in a short time completely restored. His second 
escape was from being drowned ; he having; imprudently, 
in riding for the purpose of washing his father's mare in 
an armlet of the sea, taken her out of her depth, till 
they were carried beyond the breakers into the swell, 
where they were both swamped in a moment. But that 
God whom "waves obey," and who designed him for 
matters of great and high importance, caused one wave 
after another to perform for him the genial service of 
rolling him to the shore before the vital spark was quite 
extinct. 

The love of God was no sooner shed abroad in his 
heart, than he felt a yearning pity, a burning charity, 
for his friends and fellow creatures. He not only in- 
duced his parents to have family worship, on the morn- 
ing and evening of every day in the week, as well as on 
the Sabbath, which they had been accustomed to have , 
hut he also consented, though it w r as a heavy cross, regu- 
larly to officiate himself. He, however, had his reward : 
all his relatives became hearers of the Methodists, and 
most of them members of society. He then began to 
exhort his neighbours to turn to God. On the Sabbath 
he went regularly, in ail weathers, a distance of more 
than six miles to meet a class, which assembled so early 
that, in the winter, he had to set out two hours before 
day. When he had met his class, he proceeded to the 
nearest village, and entering the first open door, said, 
" Peace be to this house !" If consent was given, he 
called in the neighbours, prayed, and gave a short 



12 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

exhortation. This done, he went to another village, and 
repeated the same plan ; and so on through the day, 
without ever encountering a direct refusal. His youth 
and great seriousness made a favourable impression, 
which his prayers and exhortations tended to deepen. 
In this manner he not unfrequently visited nine or ten 
villages in one day. 

After his removal to Colerain, he and his master 
went on for some time very comfortably, and Mr. 
Bennett was much pleased with him. To Mr. Henry 
Moore, who was personally acquainted with Mr. Bennett, 
we are indebted for the following information: "Mr. 
Bennett and young Clarke were one day engaged in 
measuring a piece of linen, preparatory to the great 
market ip Dublin. They found that particular piece 
wanting some inches of a yard at the end. ' Come, 
Adam,' says Mr. Bennett, 'lay hold, and pull against 
me ; and we shall soon make it come up to the yard.' 
But he little knew with whom he had to deal. Adam 
dropped the linen on the ground, and stood and looked 
like one benumbed. 'What's the matter?' said Mr. 
Bennett. ' Sir,' he replied, ' I can't do it : I think it is 
a wrong thing.' Mr. Bennett urged that it was done 
every day ; that it would not make the linen any the 
worse ; and that the process through which it had 
passed had made it shrink a little ; and concluded by 
bidding him take hold! 'No,' says Adam, 'no!' Mr. 
Bennett was a very placid man, and they entered calmly 
into dispute. At last he was obliged to give it up ; Adam 
would not consent to meddle with it; he thought it was 
not fair. It did not suit the standard of his conscience." 
He continued with Mr. Bennett about one year, without 
being bound an apprentice, and then parted with him in 
the most friendly manner. 

Shortly after this, he received an invitation to visit 
Mr. Bredin, one of the preachers, then on the London- 
derry side of the circuit. The day after his arrival Mr. 
Bredin desired him to preach, and take a text. This he 
had not yet attempted, and, being alive to its importance, 
objected ; but his friend persisting strongly to urge him, 
he at length yielded, and preached his first sermon at 
New Buildings, a village five miles from Deny, June 
19, 1782, from 1 John v, 19: "We know that we are 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 13 

of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness." The 
generality of his hearers were so well pleased that they 
entreated him to preach to them the next morning at 
five. He consented, and during his short stay preached 
five times. Mr. Bredin, believing that his young friend 
was called of God to the work of the ministry, wrote 
to Mr. Wesley concerning him, who immediately offered 
to take Adam into Kingswood School, near Bristol. 
When this proposal was communicated to his parents, 
they were quite indignant. His father would neither 
speak to him nor see him. His mother told him that, 
if he left them, he would go with her curse, and not her 
blessing. He had recourse to the throne of grace, and 
God heard him. His parents became convinced that he 
had other work to do, and granted him their permission 
to leave them. He sailed from Londonderry on the 17th 
of August, 178:2; taking with him, as provision for the 
voyage, a loaf of bread and a pound of cheese, and 
reached Liverpool in two days. He travelled by coach 
to Bristol ; and the next morning, August 25th, with 
only three halfpence hi his pocket, walked to Kings- 
wood. 

The treatment he received while here, from the head 
master and his wife, was most unkind, and just the 
reverse of that which he had expected ; but it lasted 
only one month and two days, — thirty-one days too 
much, if God had not been pleased to order it other- 
wise. Mr. Wesley, however, returned in a few weeks 
from Cornwall, and then sent for Adam. "I went into 
Bristol," says he, "saw Mr. Rankin, who carried me to 
Mr. Wesley's study, off the great lobby of the rooms 
over the chapel in Broadmead. He tapped at the door, 
which was opened by this truly apostolic man ; Mr. 
Rankin retired. Mr. Wesley took me kindly by the hand, 
and asked me how long since I had left Ireland. Our 
conversation was short. He said, ' Well, brother Clarke, 
do you wish to devote yourself entirely to the work of 
God?' I answered, 'Sir, I wish to do and be what 
God pleases !' He then said, ' We want a preacher for 
Bradford ; (Wilts. ;) hold yourself in readiness to go 
thither ; I am going into the country, and will let you 
know when you shall go.' He then turned to me, laid 
his hands upon my head, and spent a few moments in 



14 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

praying to God to bless and preserve me, and to give 
me success in the work to which I was called." 

Mr, Clarke entered on the regular work of a Method- 
ist travelling preacher, on September 26th, 1782, having 
a tolerable acquaintance with the Scriptures and a heart 
full of zeal for the salvation of souls ; and though he 
had the appearance of a " little boy," yet he was so 
prudent and deeply serious, that "no man despised his 
youth." Souls were awakened, and many young per- 
sons especially began earnestly to inquire the way of 
salvation. The circuit was very extensive, comprising 
no less than thirty-one towns and villages, and he had 
to preach and travel several miles every day, beside 
attending to various other duties ; yet such was his 
thirst for learning, that he availed himself of every 
opportunity for cultivating his mind, by rising early, 
reading on horseback, and " never whiling away his 
time." But a circumstance took place about this period 
which had nearly proved ruinous to all his attainments 
in literature. In the preachers' room at Motcomb, near 
Shaftesbury, observing a Latin sentence on the wall, he 
wrote another from Virgil, corroborative of the first. 
One of his colleagues, Mr. J. A., subjoined, " Did you 
write the above to show us you could write Latin ? 
For shame ! Do send pride to hell, from whence it 
came. O young man ! improve your time ! Eternity's 
at hand." This ridiculous effusion, probably the offspring 
of envy, had such an effect on the mind of Mr. Clarke, 
that ii; a moment of strong temptation he fell on his 
knees in the midst of the room, and solemnly promised 
to God that, he would never more meddle with Greek 
or Latin as long as he lived ! This hasty vow he ob- 
served for four years, when he bitterly repented of it, 
asked forgiveness of God, and recommenced the study 
of these languages. 

During this year he read Mr. Y\ r esley's " Letter on 
Tea," and resolved that he would drink neither tea nor 
coffee, till he could answer the arguments to his satis- 
faction. This resolution he kept to the end of his life. 

At the following conference he was admitted into full 
connection, and then appointed to the Norwich circuit, 
which at that time extended over considerable, portions 
of Norfolk and Suffolk. Religion was at an exceedingly 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 15 

low ebb ; and scarcely a Sabbath passed without disturb- 
ances at the Methodist chapel. During a remarkably- 
severe winter he endured many hardships, often sleep- 
ing in lofts and outhouses, and being obliged to subsist 
on very scanty fare. 

From Norwich he went in the year 1784 to St. Austell, 
in Cornwall, which was also a very heavy circuit ; the 
places were numerous, and he had to preach almost every 
week in the year in the open air, and at times too when 
the rain was pouring down, and when the snow lay deep 
upon the ground. " But the prosperity of Methodism 
made every thing pleasant." A heavenly flame broke 
out, and great numbers joined the society. Among these 
was Samuel Drew, who was then just terminating his 
apprenticeship to a shoemaker : " A man," says Mr. 
Clarke, " of primitive simplicity of manners, amiable- 
ness of disposition, piety toward God, and benevolence 
to men, seldom to be equalled ; and for reach of thought, 
keenness of discrimination, purity of language, and manly 
eloquence, not to be surpassed in any of the common 
walks of life. In short, his circumstances considered, 
with the mode of his education, he is one of those prodi- 
gies of nature and grace which God rarely exhibits ; but 
which serve to keep up the connecting link between 
those who are confined to houses of clay, whose foun- 
dations are in the dust, and beings of a superior order in 
those regions where infirmity cannot enter, and where 
the sunshine of knowledge suffers neither diminution nor 
eclipse." Eulogistic as this is, I can bear testimony to 
its correctness. I knew Mr. Drew well, received many 
a useful lesson from him, esteemed him while he lived, 
and now deeply revere his memory. I have frequently 
heard him and my venerable father, with other aged 
Methodists in my native circuit, speak of Mr. Clarke's 
unbounded popularity in those early days ; he being 
sometimes obliged, when the chapel had been thronged, 
to enter through the window, and creep on his hands 
and knees over the heads and shoulders of the people, 
in order to reach the pulpit. The doctor's death was a 
severe stroke to Mr. Drew ; he survived it only a few 
months ; they were then joined 

" In those Elysian seats 
Where Jonathan his David meets." 



16 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 

In 1785 Mr. Clarke was appointed to Plymouth 
Dock, (now called Devonport,) where the society was 
doubled in the course of the year. Here Chambers' 
Cyclopaedia, in two volumes folio, was lent him by 
James Hore, Esq. He read it attentively, made nearly 
every subject discussed in it his own ; and laid the 
whole under contribution to his ministerial labours. 
He also obtained the loan from Miss Kennicott, of her 
brother's (the celebrated Dr. Kennicott's) edition of the 
Hebrew Bible, two volumes folio, with various readings 
from near seven hundred MSS. and early printed edi- 
tions. This book greatly increased his thirst for a 
better knowledge of biblical criticism. 

The next three years were spent in the Norman Isles. 
Here he obtained much assistance from the public 
library of St. Heliers, where he spent most of his 
leisure hours in reading and collating the original texts 
in Walton's Polyglot Bible, particularly the Hebrew, 
Samaritan, Chaldee, Syriac, Vulgate, and Septuagint : 
and before he left, he was enabled to purchase a Poly- 
glot for himself, with ten pounds which he had received 
in a letter from a person from whom he had no expecta- 
tion of receiving any thing of the kind. But what 
was more pleasing to him, the word of the Lord had 
free course and was glorified. Among the converts was 
a soldier who had been a slave to drunkenness. One 
morning, having become intoxicated before five o'clock, 
he had strolled out to Les Terres, where Mr. Clarke 
was preaching, and was deeply convinced of his lost 
condition. At the close of the service, he took Mr. 
Clarke b)' the hand, and with the tears streaming down 
his cheeks, between drunkenness and distress, said, 
" O sir ! I know you are a man possessed by the Spirit 
of God !" He went home ; and after three days' 
agonies, God, in tender compassion, set his soul at 
liberty. 

While on this station he had several very remarkable 
deliverances : once or twice from the hands of a furious 
mob ; another time from the fatal effects of intense 
cold, while walking through deep snow ; and once from 
a watery grave, while in a little vessel, during a tre- 
mendous storm, offAlderney. 

On the 17th of April, 1788, Mr. Clarke was married 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 17 

to Miss Mary Cooke, the eldest daughter of Mr. John 
Cooke, clothier, Trowbridge. In a private communica- 
tion he says, " Before I took my beloved Mary by the 
hand, who was most delicately brought up, I asked her, 
1 As I am at the disposal of Mr. Wesley and the confer- 
ence, and they can send me whither they please, will 
you go with me whithersoever I am sent V ' Yes ; if I 
take you, I take you as a minister of Christ, and shall go 
with you to the ends of the earth.' And the first step 
she took was with me on my mission to the Norman 
Isles." As Mrs. Clarke is still living,* it is only neces- 
sary to say that, for above forty-two years, during 
which they were united, she showed, in all the various 
circumstances through which they passed, she was the 
woman worthy of being the wife of Adam Clarke. Six 
sons and six daughters were the fruit of their marriage. 
Miss Anne Cooke, one of Mrs. Clarke's sisters, became 
the wife of John Butterworth, Esq., and, with her hus- 
band, was brought to God through Mr. and Mrs. Clarke's 
instrumentality, and for many years, in a very elevated 
station, adorned the doctrine of God their Saviour in all 
things. 

In 1789 Mr. Clarke received his appointment as super- 
intendent for the Bristol circuit. This, in consequence 
of family afflictions and other causes, he informed me, 
was one of the most painful years of his life. 

The conference of 1790 appointed him to Dublin,! 
where he no sooner arrived than he found himself ex- 
posed to numberless difficulties and distressing circum- 
stances. He and his family were obliged to go into very 

* This excellent woman has since deceased. She died on the 
26th of December, 1836, in full hope of a glorious hnmortality. — 
Am. Ed. 

t He had previously received the following letter from Mr. 
Wesley : — 

" Near Dublin, June 25, 1789. 

" Dear Adam, — You send me good news with regard to the 
islands. Who can hurt us, if God is on our side 7 Trials may 
come, bat they are all good. I have not been so tried for many 
years. Every week, arid almost every day, I am bespattered in 
the public papers. Many are in tears on the occasion, many ter- 
ribly frightened, and ciying out, ' O, what will the end be % what 
will the end be V Why, glory to God in the highest, and peace 
snd good will among men. But, meantime, what is to be done I 
What will be the most effectual means to stem this furious torrent '] 



18 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

inconvenient lodgings ; and when the preacher's new 
house was finished, they were induced to go into it 
before it was dry, which nearly cost all of them their 
lives. He was seized with a severe rheumatic affection, 
in the head, from which he very slowly recovered. 
There were also very warm disputes in the society, re- 
specting the use of the liturgy in the Whitefriar-street 
Chapel, which gave him great uneasiness. While in 
this circuit he formed a charitable institution, called 
" The Strangers' Friend Society," the first of several 
that were organized by him in the principal towns of 
England, as Manchester, Liverpool, and London ; and 
which have contributed greatly to the relief of suffering 
humanity. 

The year 1791 is remarkable in the history of Me- 
thodism for the death of Mr. Wesley. When Mr. 
Clarke first heard of this solemn event, he says that he 
"was overwhelmed with grief; and that such were his 
feelings, all he could do was to read the little printed 
account of his last moments." His admiration of Mr. 
Wesley was such as I have not perceived in any other 
of the followers of that extraordinary individual. I have 
more than once heard him say, that, taking him altoge- 
ther, as a man, a Christian, a divine, a philanthropist, a 
favoured instrument in the hands of God in winning 
souls, he had not been surpassed, if equalled, since the 
days of the apostles. It is deeply to be regretted that 
peculiar circumstances should have prevented the doc- 
tor from writing the Life of the Founder of Methodism, 
— an Apelles that could have painted an Alexander. 
Mr. Wesley's opinion of Mr. Clarke we have in a letter 
of his to Mr. King. So early as the year 1787, that cor- 
rect judge of character hesitated not to affirm, " Adam 

I have just visited the classes, and find still in the society upward 
of a thousand members ; and, among them, many as deep Chris- 
tians as any I have met with in Europe. But who is able to watch 
over these, that they may not be moved from their steadfastness 1 I 
know none more proper than Adam Clarke and his wife. Indeed, 
it may seem hard for them to go into a strange land again. Well, 
you may come to me, at Leeds, the latter end of next month ; and 
if you can show me any that are more proper, I will send them 
instead, that God may be glorified in all that is designed by, 
" Dear Adam, 
" Your affectionate friend and brother, 

" J. Wesley." 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 19 

Clarke is doubtless an extraordinary young man, and 
capable of doing much good." In his will, Mr. Wesley 
appointed him one of the seven trustees of all his literary 
property. 

The first conference after the death of Mr. Wesley, 
as Mr. Clarke's health was in a very declining state, he 
was appointed to the Manchester circuit, principally 
with a view to his using the Buxton waters, as the like- 
liest means of his recovery. The remedy was tried, 
and his health completely restored. About this time the 
French revolution was the universal topic ; and various 
political questions were agitated with considerable ex- 
citement. These were sometimes introduced into the 
pulpit, but never by Mr. Clarke : he informed me that, 
during this painful period, in almost every sermon he 
urged his hearers to seek entire sanctification. Of his 
colleagues, Messrs. Samuel Bradburn and Joseph Ben- 
son, I have heard him speak in the highest terms. He 
thought them the two greatest preachers of the day. It 
is somewhat remarkable that it fell to his lot to perform 
the last office of friendship to the mortal remains of both 
these eminent men, by delivering an address at their 
graves. The former died in 1816, the latter in 1821. 

From Manchester Mr. Clarke went to Liverpool, 
where he and the venerable Mr. Pawson, with whom he 
acted in perfect unison, had the satisfaction of seeing the 
society more than doubled during their joint ministry. 
Mrs. Pawson then entered, in her private journal, her 
opinion of her husband's colleague in the following 
terms : — " Brother Clarke is, in my estimation, an extra- 
ordinary preacher ; and his learning confers great lustre 
on his talents : he makes it subservient to grace. His 
discourses are highly evangelical : he never loses sight 
of Christ. In regard of pardon and holiness, he offers 
a present salvation. His address is lively, animated, 
and very encouraging to the seekers of salvation. In 
respect to the unawakened, it may indeed be said, that 
he obeys that precept, ' Cry aloud ; spare not ; lift up 
thy voice like a trumpet.' His words flow spontane- 
ously from the heart ; his views enlarge as he proceeds ; 
and he brings to the mind a torrent of things new and 
old. While he is preaching, one can seldom cast an 
eye on the audience, without perceiving a melting 



20 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 

unction resting upon them. His ' speech distils as the 
dew, and as the small rain upon the tender herb.' He 
generally preaches from some part of the lesson for the 
day; and, on the Sabbath morning, from the gospel for 
the day : this method confers an abundant variety on 
his ministry." 

While in this circuit, Mr. Clarke nearly lost his life 
by assassination. Returning home one evening from a 
country village accompanied by two friends, a stone, 
upward of a pound weight, struck him on the head, cut 
through his hat, and inflicted a deep wound. This hor- 
rid deed was proved to be the act of a Papist, who, with 
another of the same creed, had been to hear him preach, 
and waylaid him on his return ; and, had he been alone, 
would in all probability have murdered him. He was 
confined for more than a month, a considerable part of 
which time his life was in great jeopardy. The men 
were brought before a magistrate ; but, on their confess- 
ing their fault, and binding themselves never more to 
offend, both of them were discharged, — though in a few 
years they both came to a tragical end. 

The next three years Mr. Clarke spent in London, 
and during that time walked upward of seven thousand 
miles, merely in the performance of his duty as a Me- 
thodist preacher. In the year 1797 he commenced his 
career of authorship by the publication of a pamphlet, 
entitled, " A. Dissertation on the Use and Abuse of 
Tobacco." 

From the year 1798 to 1805 the subject of our me- 
moir was appointed successively to Bristol, Liverpool, 
and Manchester. His father died in November, 1798, 
full of faith and hope. This he laid deeply to heart, and 
expressed himself as if the bands of life were loosened 
around him, and that he wished to " go and die with 
him " He never afterward passed Ardwiek church- 
yard, where his father was interred, without taking off 
his hat, and holding it in his hand until he had made his 
way beyond it, to manifest how much he honoured, as 
well as loved, this guide of his youth. 

In the year 1800, Mr. Clarke published a translation 
of " Sturm's Reflections on the Works of God," which 
had an extensive and rapid sale. 

In 1802 he edited and published "A Bibliographical 



HRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 21 

Dictionary," in 6 vols., 12mo., to which, in the year 
1806, he added two other volumes, as a "Bibliographical 
Miscellany or Supplement ;" and, about the same time, 
"A Succinct Account of Polyglot Bibles, from the pub- 
lication of that by Porrus in the year 1516, to that of 
Reineccius in 1750: including several curious particu- 
lars relative to the London Polyglot, and Castell's Hep- 
taglot Lexicon, not noticed by Bibliographers :" also, 
" A Succinct Account of the principal Editions of the 
Greek Testament, from the first printed at Complutum, 
in 1514, to that by Professor Griesbach, in 1797." 
These several works contain a mass of information, and 
will be found a useful guide to the study of Biblical 
literature. 

While in Liverpool, Mr. Clarke projected the for- 
mation of a "Philological Society;" of which he was 
unanimously chosen president. The same honour was 
conferred upon him a few years after, when a similar 
society was instituted in Manchester. The code of 
rules, and one hundred and seventy-one questions on 
various literary and scientific subjects came from the 
pen of Mr. Clarke. A copy of them now lies before 
me. Some of the questions are exceedingly important 
and curious. 

In 1804 Mr. Clarke gave to the public an improved 
edition of " Fleury's Manners of the Ancient Israelites ;" 
and an abridgment of " Baxter's Christian Directory," 
in 2 vols., 8vo. During the same year, the Eclectic 
Review was commenced ; and Mr. Clarke was earnestly 
requested to lend his able assistance in reviewing some 
Hebrew and other oriental works. After some reluc- 
tance he consented, and furnished some reviews, which 
contributed not a little to the respectability of the new 
periodical. Of his review of Holmes' Septuagint, Pro- 
fessor Bentley writes, " It is more conformable to my 
ideas of what a review should be, than is generally to be 
met with in the periodical publications of the present 
day : it is such a complete account and analysis of the 
work as will enable a person to form a just opinion of 
it. The article contains many particulars of additional 
information, more than Holmes has given ; and these 
you have so intermingled with those draw r n from Holmes, 
that the generality of readers will not perceive to whom 



22 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 

they are indebted for them. The opposite to this is, I 
believe, the usual practice of reviewers : they often dis- 
play information as their own, which they owe altogether 
to their author, whom they perhaps are abusing ; and 
thus make it more their object to seem knowing them- 
selves than even to give a proper and just account of 
the author whose work they are professing to review." 

He was appointed a second time to the London circuit 
in 1805 ; and, at the conference held in Leeds in 1806, 
he was elected president ; and, in defiance of all his pro- 
testations against it, he was taken by main force, lifted 
out of his seat, and placed in the chair ! 

About this time " the British and Foreign Bible So- 
ciety" nominated Mr. Clarke a member of its committee. 
The assistance which he rendered was most important, 
such as " was indispensable to the successful prosecu- 
tion of the society's plans," and which cost him no ordi- 
nary sacrifice of time and labour. For it the committee 
requested permission to present him with fifty pounds ; 
" an offering," says the late Rev. John Owen, " which 
that learned and public-spirited individual respectfully 
but peremptorily declined to accept." 

His " Concise View of the Succession of Sacred Lite- 
rature" made its appearance in 1807. For the comple- 
tion of the second volume of this valuable work the doctor 
could never find leisure ; but this, and a new and en- 
larged edition of the first, in 8vo., have been finished and 
published by the doctor's youngest son, the Rev. J. B. B. 
Clarke, A. M ., in a manner highly creditable to his scho- 
larship and talents. 

In the same year the University of Aberdeen, at the 
suggestion of the celebrated Professor Porson, conferred 
on Mr. Clarke the degree of A.M. ; and, in the following 
year, presented him with a diploma of LL. D. Both 
diplomas were sent to him in the most honourable and 
flattering manner, the college refusing to accept even the 
customary clerks' fees given on such occasions. 

"Some time in February, 1808," he observes, "I 
learned that I had been recommended to his majesty's 
commissioners of the public records of the kingdom, by 
the Right Honourable Charles Abbot, speaker of the 
house of commons, and one of the commissioners, to 
whom I was known only by some of my writings on 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 23 

Bibliography, as a fit person to undertake the depart- 
ment of collecting and arranging those state papers 
which might serve to complete and continue that collec- 
tion of state papers generally called Rymer's F&dera." 
He was struck with astonishment, and endeavoured to 
excuse himself on the grounds of general unfitness. But- 
being strongly urged by John Caley, Esq., secretary to 
the commission, and some of his friends, to try, he com- 
menced this Herculean task. He had to examine sixty 
folio volumes, with numerous collateral evidence, to visit 
the different public offices, and to make a selection of 
such records as it might be expedient to print, under the 
authority of parliament, either as a supplement or con- 
tinuation of Rymer's work. These excessive labours* 
tended greatly to impair his health, until he was obliged, 
on three different occasions, to send in his resignation to 
the "board:" it was not, however, accepted before 
March, 1819 ; when he took leave of this part of his 
public duties in the following language : " And here I 
register my thanks to God, the Fountain of wisdom and 
goodness, who has enabled me to conduct this most dif- 
ficult and delicate work for ten years, with credit to 
myself, and satisfaction to his majesty's government. 
During that time I have been requested to solve many 
difficult questions, and illustrate many obscurities ; in 
none of which have I ever failed, though the subjects 
were such as were by no means familiar to me, having 
had little of an antiquarian, and nothing of a forensic 
education. 

In 1808, Dr. Clarke was prevailed upon to become 
librarian of the Surrey Institution ; and when he relin- 
quished the office, the managers, as a mark of respect, 
constituted him " honorary librarian ;" which title he 
retained as long as the institution existed. In the course 
of the same year he published A Short Account of the 
last Illness and Death of the learned Porson, with & fac- 
simile of an ancient Greek inscription, which formed the 
topic of the professor's last literary conversation. 

* In a letter to myself, he says, " Lord Glenbervie, who was one 
of the commissioners, once wrote to me : ' Dr. Clarke, festinalenle; 
you will destroy yourself by your labour. Do a little, that you may 
do it long.' The same advice I give you. May God bless you, 
my dear Sammy." 



24 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 

In the year 1810, Dr. Clarke projected, in conjunction 
with the Rev. Josiah Pratt, a new edition of the London 
Polyglot Bible. The prospectus was printed and cir- 
culated, but, for want of adequate support, the important 
undertaking was abandoned. This he greatly regretted 
to the day of his death. It was in the month of July of 
this year that the first part of his Commentary on the 
Holy Scriptures was issued from the press. This 
monument of learning and piety we shall afterward 
notice. 

On the 1st of December, 1814, a Wesleyan Methodist 
missionary meeting was held for the first time in City- 
Road Chapel, London. Dr. Clarke, being that year pre- 
sident of the conference, was called to the chair ; and 
shortly after published the address which he delivered, 
under the title of " A. Short Account of the Introduction 
of the Gospel into the British Isles ; and the Obligation 
of Britons to make known its Salvation to every Nation 
of the Earth." 

In 1815, Dr. Clarke removed from London, and took 
up his residence at Millbrook, in Lancashire. Here he 
was relieved from many burdens that in the metropolis 
had pressed heavily upon him, breathed a pure air, and 
engaged himself in his favourite agricultural pursuits, 
which had a most beneficial effect upon his constitution. 
In the summer of 1816, he made a tour through part of 
Scotland and Ireland, and visited what he calls, in a 
letter now before me, " the place that had every thing 
to recommend it to my attention and heart. The place 
is that in which I spent my boyish days; where I re- 
ceived the rudiments of the little education I have ; where 
I first felt conviction of sin, righteousness, and judg- 
ment ; where I first saw or heard a Methodist ; where 
I first tasted the pardoning love of God, after having 
passed through a great fight of affliction ; where I joined 
the Methodist society ; where I first led a class ; where 
I first began to preach redemption in Christ Jesus, and 
from which I was called to become an itinerant preacher. 
And these things took place in the parish, and in the 
compass of about three fields' breadth in that parish, 
which is on the edge of the sea, where there is the most 
beautiful shore in the world, extending above twenty 
miles, of as perfectly level hard sand as can be con- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 25 

ceived ; — the very place where I was once drowned, and 
perhaps miraculously restored to life ; where I was ac- 
customed to bathe, and from the rocks of which I used 
to catch many fish, and among the rocks of which I 
spent many an hour in catching crabs, &c. Such a 
place, thus circumstanced, must afford a multitude of the 
most impressive reminiscences. No place on the face 
of the earth can have so many attractions for me." 

Dr. Clarke came to town in May, 1818, to attend the 
anniversary meetings of the Wesleyan Methodist Mis- 
sionary Society; and, while on the platform, he received 
a note from Sir Alexander Johnston, who was then 
within sight of land, on his return from Ceylon, and 
who had brought with him, at their own most earnest 
entreaties, two high priests of Budhoo, who wished to be 
instructed in the principles of Christianity. Sir Alexander 
and the missionary committee prevailed on Dr. Clarke 
to take charge of them, and afford them all the instruc- 
tions he could in the knowledge of divine things. Two 
days after their arrival in London, I had the pleasure of 
accompanying the doctor and these two interesting 
strangers, one of whom was then forty-five years of 
age, and the other twenty-seven, to Bristol. They 
travelled without hat or cap, with a splendid yellow 
garment thrown loosely over the left shoulder, and with 
not only the head, but also the neck, breast, and right 
arm entirely bare, to the no little astonishment of be- 
holders. They remained with their kind and eminent 
instructer for about two years, were baptized into the 
Christian faith, and then returned to Ceylon, where they 
have held fast their profession. One fills an important 
office under government, and the other is a licensed 
teacher in the Church establishment. 

In June, 1821, the doctor again visited Ireland, and, 
shortly after, his name was enrolled among the chief 
literati of the country. In a letter to me he writes : 
"M.R.I. A. signify Member of the Royal Irish Aca- 
demy, to which I was most honourably elected, without 
knowing any of the parties who brought me before the 
Academy ; my countrymen being determined to bestow 
on me the highest literary honour in their gift." 

In the spring of the following year an acquaintance 
was commenced between Dr. Clarke and his royal 

2 



26 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

highness the duke of Sussex. This was most honour- 
able to the doctor, was unsolicited on his part, and 
continued without any compromise of either his character 
or principles. 

At the conference held in London in the year 1822, 
Dr. Clarke was, for the third time, chosen president ; a 
circumstance as yet unique in the history of Methodism. 
It was determined at this conference that two preachers 
should be sent to the Shetland Isles. The writer of 
these lines, who was present on the occasion, was the 
first who offered his services, if his brethren thought 
him adequate for the arduous enterprise. He was im- 
mediately appointed ; and, with the Rev. John Raby, 
after spending a few days at Millbrook, proceeded to 
Edinburgh, there took ship, and, after four days' sail, 
safely arrived in Lerwick. In the name of the Lord of 
hosts they set up their banner ; they preached a free, 
full, and present salvation ; multitudes nocked to hear 
the word, and not a few felt its transforming efficacy. 
Other preachers followed in the same track, and were 
equally successful.. From ten to twenty chapels have 
been erected, and numerous societies formed. There 
are now sixWesleyan Methodist preachers labouring in 
the islands, and one thousand three hundred and seventy 
members in society. What the mission to these " naked 
melancholy isles" is indebted to Dr. Clarke, will not be 
known before " that day shall break which never more 
shall close." He travelled, he begged, he wrote, he 
prayed for it ; and it is my decided conviction that, with- 
out his very efficient aid, such as no other man in the 
kingdom could have rendered, it would have been long 
since abandoned. Of that assistance it is now deprived, 
and is dependent for its support on the Methodists' 
Contingent Fund, and on the contributions of an en- 
lightened and benevolent public. I most strongly, 
therefore, recommend it to the attention and liberality 
of all who revere the memory of the venerable doctor, 
or who feel compassion for the sheep that are scattered 
over the mountains. 

The doctor visited the islands himself in the year 
1826, and again in 1827 ; and on his return, when I was 
stationed in Newcastle-on-Tyne, wrote to me thus : 
" And now, Sammy, what shall I say about the work of 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 27 

which we have written and spoken so much ? 1 cannot 
say that it answered my expectation. It far exceeded 
all that I had even hoped. I have not witnessed so 
much good done in so short a time, with such slender 
means, wherever I have travelled ; nor have I read of 
such. I saw all the preachers, and had the leaders from 
every isle and place of preaching, (either at Walls or 
Lerwick,) and I inquired closely into the work every- 
where ; and I believe I pretty well know the whole ; 
I have seen the grace of God which is among them, and 
am sovereignly glad. The half of the good I witnessed 
had not been told me. Indeed, the preachers themselves 
do not fully know it. When I reflected on your first 
entering in among this people, the difficulties which you 
had to encounter, the soil wholly unprepared, &c, &c, 
I stand astonished at the work. I see fully that of the 
great harvest in the principal parts of Shetland, you 
sowed the seed. God has put great honour upon you, 
and multitudes remember you even with tears of affec- 
tion." 

It was in the year 1824 that Dr. Clarke sold his 
house and land in Lancashire, quitted Millbrook, and 
purchased, and then removed to Haydon Hall, a lovely 
spot, near Pinner, and about sixteen miles from London. 

In 1830, the doctor, on his visit to Ireland, esta- 
blished several schools in the extensive and populous 
districts around Colerain, where many were perishing 
for lack of knowledge. These schools were inspected 
by him in 1831. 

In January, 1832, he gave the following account of 
the death of Robert Scott, Esq., of Pensford, near Bris- 
tol, in a letter to Mrs. Clarke: " At half past ten this 
evening, Mr. Scott changed mortality for life. Such a 
death I never witnessed. We had prayed to God to 
give him an easy passage ; and we did not pray in vain : 
for he had one of the most placid and easiest I have ever 
heard or seen. His wife, and several of the relatives, 
and myself were kneeling around his bed. I offered 
the departing prayer; and, after it, had just time to rise 
from my knees, to go to him, lay my hands on his head, 
and pronounce the blessing of Aaron on the Israelites: 
* The Lord bless thee, and keep thee ! The Lord make 
his face shine uoon thee, and be gracious unto thee ! 



28 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 

The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give 
thee peace,' when his last breath went forth ! Thus, in 
the eighty-fifth year of his age, died this undeviating 
friend of Shetland.* I would not have missed this sight 
for a great deal. I seem to have come hither in order 
to learn to die." 

On his return to Haydon Hall, he found a letter con- 
taining an invitation from the board of managers of the 
Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
of New- York, to go over to America, and assist them in 
their missionary labours, and in their church assembly. 
After stating the reasons why he could not accept the 
invitation, and expressing his regret, he proceeds thus : 
" Yet I am far from supposing that there may not be a 

* The following letter I received in 1825 : — 

" My Dear Sammy, — When I had but one sovereign in the world 
for Shetland, I prayed, called earnestly upon God, and sat down 
and wept — and wept till I could scarcely see to write or read. — 
"Well, I once more thought, I must lay the whole before our best 
earthly friend. With a full heart, I stated the matter in a letter to 
Mr. Scott, which letter was watered with fast falling tears. He 
wrote me word that he and Mrs. Scott would be up in a fortnight 
and see me. They came ; and I set off in very bad health to Lon- 
don to meet them : — and O, what a meeting ! — their hearts were 
nearly as full as mine. Says Mr. Scott, ' Come, let me have a 
check, I will give orders on my bank for £100.' Says Mrs. Scott, 
' And I will, out of my private purse, give £5.' ' And I am de- 
sired,' says Mr. Scott, 'by my sister-in-law, Miss Grainger, to give 
£5; and lest any chapel begun should be impeded, here is £10 
more, and thus 1 will give the check for £120. And this is not all 
that I will do; I tell you again, I will give £10 to every chapel or 
house begun under your direction in Shetland.' O, my Sammy ! 
you can hardly tell how much I rejoiced — I thanked God, I thanked 
them, and could have kissed the ground on which they trod. I 
said in my heart, ' O my poor Shetlanders ! ( whom I have never seen, 
and now never shall see, but God has laid you upon my heart !) 
God has not forgotten you.' I sent my check to the bankers, got 
the cash, £120, and immediately wrote to you, and told you what 
God had done, to take courage and go forward. Mr. Scott has 
written to me, two or three days ago, stating that he is very poorly, 
and wishes to make a ' trust deed' in behalf of Shetland, and to do 
this immediately ; and wishes me to give him the names with 
which I wish it to be filled. Old as I am, I must be one, Mr. But- 
terworth will be another, and you shall be the third. 

" Yours, my dear Sammy, affectionately, 

" Adam Clarke." 

Mr. Butterworth, Mr. Scott, and the dear doctor, have all since 
been called to give an account of their stewardship. Mr. Scott 
*eft three thousand pounds to the Shetland mission, in the three- 
and-half per cents. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 29 

providential interference in the way. I am an old man, 
having gone beyond threescore years and ten, and, 
consequently, not able to perform the labour of youth. 
You would naturally expect me to preach much ; and 

this I could not do I would say to all, Keep your 

doctrines and your discipline, not only in your church 
books, and in your society rules, but preach the former 
without refining upon them, observe the latter without 
bending it to circumstances, or impairing its vigour by 
frivolous exceptions and partialities. As I believe your 
nation to be destined to be the mightiest and happiest 
nation on the globe, so I believe that your church is 
likely to become the most extensive and pure in the 
universe. As a church, abide in the apostles' doctrine 
and fellowship. As a nation, be firmly united ; enter- 
tain no petty differences ; totally abolish the slave trade ; 
abhor all offensive wars ; never provoke even the puniest 
state ; and never strike the first blow. Encourage 
agriculture and friendly traffic. Cultivate the sciences 
and arts ; let learning have its proper place, space, and 
adequate share of esteem and honour. If possible, live 
in peace with all nations ; retain your holy zeal for God's 
cause and your country's weal ; and that you may ever 
retain your liberty, avoid, as its bane and ruin, a national 
debt." 

In May, 1832, he visited Ireland for the last time ; 
and in a private communication gives the following 
account of his voyage : — " On Tuesday, I left Bruerton 
in the mail for Liverpool, where I arrived at six in the 
evening ; immediately crossed the Mersey, and got to 
Oakfield, to my old friend, Mr. Forshaw, where I rested 
myself till Friday, and then put myself on board the 
* Corsair' at half past twelve ; and although we had 
the wind right ahead, we had a very calm sea, and one 
of the best passages, for the distance, I ever had, either 
in these or any other seas. In fifteen hours I was com- 
pletely across the channel ; and, having dined in the 
one kingdom, I was long before breakfast time in the 
other. It was indeed a mercy that the passage was so 
short, for a worse set of passengers I never met with. 
They passed for, and affected to be, Irish gentlemen ; 
and by their conduct seemed to be in league with hell 
and death, and with the devil to hold agreement — drink- 



30 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

ing, vociferating, arguing politics, in the most ferocious 
manner ; talking high treason ; abusing the king, the 
queen, the duke of Wellington, and many others, in the 
most unmeasured manner ; swearing, cursing, vowing 
the death of all the tithe proctors ; one stated that he 
had engaged a man at half a crown a head to cut the 
throats, and take off the heads, of all and every of the 
tithe proctors that might show themselves on his estate. 
And to all this was added the vilest brothel obscenity. 
My heart was often obliged to say, « Gather not my soul 
with sinners, nor my life with the blood thirsty ;' and 
could say with one of old, ' O Lord, thou knowest I 
have not loved the company of the unrighteous in this 
world, let me not be condemned to have it eternally in 
the world to come.' To avoid these infernals, I walked 
the deck to a late hour, and then came down among 
them to lie upon a sofa, for I had no other bed. O 
what a hell to be condemned to keep company with 
such workers of iniquity ! After such a companionship, 
what a blessing, on the following Sabbath morning, I 
felt the communion of saints to be ! We had a lovely 
congregation at the chapel in this place, (Donaghadee,) 
and all appeared cordially to hear, and deeply to feel." 
The conference of 1832 was held in Liverpool, at the 
time that the cholera was raging to an alarming degree. 
Though the doctor was in a very poor state of health, 
and was affectionately expostulated with by Mrs. Clarke 
not to go, he answered : " I know you never grudged 
me in my duty and work ; and I think with you that I 
am scarcely fit to go. But I have duties to perform in 
reference to Shetland and the Irish schools : and, be- 
sides, I earnestly wish to leave my testimony for God 
and Methodism once more in the midst of my brethren." 
He attended ; but, while there, wrote to a friend thus : 
"I have been variously afflicted, and, indeed, have been 
brought down almost to the sides of the pit, and, though 
much better, my health is in a great measure pros- 
trated ; and though I am here at conference, I am far 
from being in a state either to do or to attend to much 
business. I went to Ireland to work much, but I was 
called to suffer, not to labour. Indeed, I was over- 
worked before I crossed the channel, and had little 
strength to lose when I got to the scene of my labours. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 31 

Striving to do what I was not able to perform, I had 
four relapses. Well, in all these I was preserved from 
every murmuring thought. I knew I was in the hand 
of the Lord, and therefore was safe, and my expecta- 
tion has not been disappointed; I feel that God alone 
is my portion. I write in conference, and have such a 
troublesome cough that I can scarcely write intelligibly, 
and must give it up." He, however, at the earnest re- 
quest of his brethren, preached twice. His sermons 
will not soon be forgotten by those who heard them. 
After the conference he went to Frome, where his son 
Joseph was curate, to assist in the formation of a "So- 
ciety for the Melioration of the Condition of the 
Poor" in that extensive parish. On the 19th of August 
he preached his last sermon at Westbury, near Bristol, 
from 1 Tim. i, 15: " This is a faithful saying, and wor- 
thy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the 
world to save sinners." On the 23d he safely arrived 
at home. At family worship he offered up his suppli- 
cations in reference to the cholera, that " each and all 
might be saved from its influence, or prepared for sud- 
den death." On Saturday, the 25th, it was observed by 
the family that he commenced his prayer with these 
words : " We thank thee, O heavenly Father ! that we 
have a blessed hope through Christ of entering into 
thy glory." On rising from his knees, he remarked to 
Mrs. Clarke that he thought he must not kneel down 
much longer, as it was with pain and difficulty he could 
rise up again. In the evening he rode into Bayswater, 
at which place he was engaged to preach the following 
day. He appeared fatigued with the journey ; and 
when application was made to him to fix the time for 
preaching a charity sermon, he replied, "I am not well; 
I cannot fix a time ; I must first see what God is about 
to do with me." The next morning he was seized with 
cholera morbus, had just time and strength to declare 
that his trust was in Christ, and, about eleven o'clock 
the same evening, August 26th, 1832, he fell asleep in 
Jesus. On Wednesday, the 29th, his remains were in- 
terred in the burying ground adjoining the Methodist 
chapel City-Road. His grave is the next to that of 
Mr. Wesley. "Them which sleep in Jesus will God 
bring- with him." 



32 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

From the leading incidents in Dr. Clarke's^ life, as 
narrated in the preceding pages, the reader may obtain 
a tolerably correct view of his character, and cannot 
fail to perceive that the doctor was no ordinary man. 
We shall now briefly notice his peculiar characteristics. 
In his personal appearance there was nothing very re- 
markable. He was about five feet ten inches in height, 
and had rather a tendency, as he advanced in age, to a 
free habit of body. His frame was well compacted 
together, his limbs symmetrical, and his whole person 
remarkably erect. His eyes were small and brilliant, 
and of a light gray. His countenance was exceedingly 
rubicund ; and his hair, when young, was of a reddish 
kind of yellow, but very soon assumed a silvery hue. 
His very walk was expressive of the buoyancy of his 
mind, and the whole of his features characteristic of the 
benevolence of his heart. 

His understanding was clear, active, searching, and 
vigorous ; formed for investigation, capable of grap- 
pling with any difficulty, remarkable for its patient ap- 
plication, and possessed a singular ability for arranging 
and generalizing subjects ; perhaps more adapted for 
analysis than for synthesis. His powers of invention 
were fruitful, and his imagination vivid ; but this faculty 
he neglected, rather than cultivated. His memory was 
surprisingly retentive. He states, indeed, that of the 
thousands of sermons which he delivered he never 
knew beforehand one single sentence that he should 
utter, and that this was owing to the verbal imperfection 
of his memory. But those who have been much in his 
company have been frequently struck with his powerful 
recollection, not only of a subject in the mass, but also 
in its minutest details. The multitude of books which 
he read, the manuscripts which he examined, the ser- 
mons that he preached, the sick whom he visited, the 
journeys that he performed, the committees which he 
attended, the public business in which he assisted, the 
private interviews that he granted, the many volumes 
which he composed and published, the thousands of let- 
ters which he wrote, — in addition to all his other duties 
as a Methodist preacher, — are proofs that his industry 
must have been unintermitted, and pursued with unex- 
ampled energy. At the commencement of his public 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 33 

life he wrote : "lam determined, by the grace of God, 
to conquer and die ; and I have taken the subsequent 
motto, and have placed it before me on the mantel-piece : 
4 Stand thou as a beaten anvil to the stroke ; for it is the 
property of a good warrior to be flayed alive, and yet to 
conquer.'" But, like Mr. Wesley, though he "was 
always in haste, he w r as never in a hurry." His dress, 
library, garden, farm, all showed him to be a man of 
order. What his hand found to do he did it with all 
his might, and he did it at once. To nearly every let- 
ter he replied by return of post. To idleness he seems 
to have had no propensity : in whatever company or 
situation he was found, even in his relaxations, his mind 
was occupied. While others slept or banqueted, or 
idled out their despicable days in gossiping and folly, 
he kept the glorious harvest of this issue full in view, 
and ploughed with all his heifers, reckless of the sun 
and rain. To a young man he says, " As a travelling 
preacher I learned more in one year than I learned be- 
fore in many at school. The grand secret is to save 
time. Spend none needlessly ; keep from all unneces- 
sary company ; never be without a praying heart ; and 
have, as often as possible, a book in your hand. Make 
yourself master of Mr. Wesley's Works, and those of 
Mr. Fletcher and Mr. Sellon. Read over the Lives of 
the first Methodist preachers, — they are in the former 
Magazines ; — and read the Journal of David Brainerd, 
Missionary to the North American Indians ; and ' the 
Saints' Everlasting Rest,' as abridged by Mr. Wesley. 
Do not lie long in bed, nor sit up late at night." 

Doctor Clarke cultivated the useful rather than the 
ornamental arts. Of all the liberal arts he ever con- 
sidered music as the least useful. The few first-rate 
poets he read with high relish. On those of a second 
or third order he seldom cast his eye. He possessed, 
in a high degree, the rare ability to use knowledge. 
He himself observed that the learning that is got from 
books, or the study of languages, is of little use to any 
man, and is of no estimation, unless practically applied 
to the purposes of life; and it is said by one who knew 
him well, that «« there never was an individual who could 
use to such purpose all the stores which he accumulated. 
He possessed an astonishing power of gathering together 



34 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 

rays of light from the whole circuit of his knowledge, 
and pouring them, in one bright beam, upon any point 
which he wished to illustrate or explain. And the trea- 
sures of knowledge which his unwearied industry had 
drawn together, were all made subservient to the more 
effective execution of his ministerial office." 

His conversion, as we have seen, was clear, sound, 
and decided : of this, a life of uniform, practical, grow- 
ing piety, covering over the space of more than half a 
century, is the delightful witness. But the following 
testimony of the venerable Henry Moore, who knew 
the doctor longer than any man who survived him, must 
not be withheld : " Our connection, I believe, never 
knew a more blameless life than that of Dr. Clarke. 
He had his opponents ; he had those that differed from 
him, sometimes in doctrine, sometimes in other things; 
but these opponents, whatever they imputed to him, 
never dared to fix a stain either upon his moral or reli- 
gious character. He was, as Mr. Wesley used to say 
a preacher of the gospel should be, * without stain ;' or, 
as a greater than he had said, Dr. Clarke could have 
said, ' Which of you convinceth me of sin V " Like the 
patriarch, he said, " Till I die, I will not remove my 
integrity from me. My righteousness I hold fast, and 
will not let it go. My heart shall not reproach me as 
long as I live." Such was his unbending integrity that 
it may be said of him, as truly as it ever was affirmed 
of any statesman or patriot, " He would lay down his 
life for his country, and would not do a base thing to 
save it ; one who would neither tread upon an insect, 
nor crouch to an emperor." 

His attachment to Methodism continued to the last, 
and was then shown by a bequest for the relief of its 
chapels. He has been heard to say more than once, "I 
belong to the Methodists, — body and soul, blood and 
sinews. This coat" (seizing hold of his own sleeve) " is 
theirs." In a letter to me he remarks: "For nearly 
fifty years I have lived only for the support and credit 
of Methodism : myself and my interests, the Searcher 
of hearts knows, were never objects of my attention: 1 
came into the connection with a single eye and an up- 
right heart ; and by the mercy of God I have been able 
to retain both." From censoriousness he was perfectly 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE, 35 

free. His judgment of his brethren was never harsh or 
severe. He was always ready to speak in their praise, 
and to put the best construction on their sayings and 
doings. His humility was deep and unaffected ; with 
all his learning there was no parade. However familiar 
he might be among his friends, yet among the great and 
the learned he was modest to an excess. He shunned 
the gaze of the public, and preferred preaching in small 
chapels to large ones. He had a high sense of honour, 
but without pride and ambition. He would submit, 
with all cheerfulness, and without the least affectation, 
to perform the meanest offices for himself, his friends, 
or the poor. In a letter, dated Feb. 4, 1823, he writes : 
" Visit the people from house to house ; and speak in 
the most affectionate manner to them. Take notice of 
the children ; treat them lovingly : this will do the chil- 
dren good, and the parents will like it. Cheerfully 
partake of the meanest fare, when the people invite you. 
About two years ago, when travelling among the cot 
tages in Ireland, I went into a most wretched hovel, 
and they had just poured out the potatoes into a basket, 
which, with a little salt, were to serve for their dinner. 
I said, ' Good people, will you let me take one of your 
potatoes V ' O yes, sir ! and a thousand welcomes, 
were they covered with gold !' The people were de- 
lighted to see me eat one, and another, and a third; and 
thought that I had laid them under endless obligation. 
But they thought me an angel when for every potato 
I had eaten I gave them a shilling. But they had no 
expectation of this kind when I first asked liberty to 
taste with them. Other clergy carry themselves aloft 
from their people, and thus assume and maintain a sort 
of antiscriptural consequence. Methodist preachers 
have another kind of consequence — their humility, their 
heavenly unction, and the sound of their Master's feet 
behind them. Too much familiarity breeds contempt, 
but humility and condescension are other qualities." 

His disinterestedness was beyond all praise. He 
never once used the influence which he possessed with 
some of high rank in behalf of himself or family. When 
he had the opportunity of reaping considerable emolu- 
ment for his labours under government, and he was 
asked what they could do for him, he replied, " O, 



36 CfrRTKTLfrN THEOLOGY. LIFE OF CLARKE. 

nothing ; I dwell among my own people." He had also 
a kind heart : the various forms of human wo excited 
his softest sympathy. The distressed never left his 
door unrelieved. He has several times been known, 
when near his own gate, to give away his shoes in order 
to cover the feet of another. In the commencement of 
the year 1816, which was unusually severe, many hun- 
dreds of sailors were thrown upon the benevolence and 
compassion of the inhabitants of Liverpool: Dr. Clarke 
had some cottages untenanted, into which he put a 
quantity of straw and blankets, and then sent for twenty 
of the poor fellows. In the day time, they were em- 
ployed in making the road to his house ; and at set 
hours they assembled in his kitchen to their meals, one 
of the party having remained in-doors to cook for the 
rest. As a master he was, if possible, over indulgent. 
As a father, though he very seldom directly praised any 
of his children, he was notwithstanding passionately 
fond of them : and they, in return, were as fond of their 
father. When he heard his son Joseph preach the first 
time, he wrote to me in language which, perhaps, it 
would hardly be prudent to publish ; but which fully 
exemplified the saying: "A wise son maketh a glad 
father." As a husband, he was just what a husband 
ought to be : he loved his wife, as Christ loved the 
church. As a friend, he was accessible, affable, com- 
municative, obliging, faithful, and affectionate. It was, 
however, a maxim with him, that " proffered sympathy, 
n the time of deep sorrow and privation, whether it 
come personally or by letter, tends to exacerbate the 
evil which it wishes to remove." When I was deprived, 
by death, of a lovely son, he wrote to me thus: "I 
know well what it is to bury a child ; for I have buried 
six : a sympathizing friend may say, ' Well ! it is the 
Lord's will, and they are better provided for !' Thus I 
have learned that it is a mighty easy thing to bury 
other folks'' children !" In every private relation of life 
he was an example worthy the .imitation of all ; nor was 
he less so in his public character as a minister of Christ. 
Before I make any remarks on the doctor's preaching 
or writing, I will gratify my readers with a valuable 
letter of his to a young preacher, who had written to 
him for advice on the subjects of which it speaks — 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 37 

" My Dear Brother, — I have given many general 
and particular advices to my younger brethren in « A 
Letter to a Preacher on his first Entrance into the Work 
of the Ministry.' If you have not read this little tract, 
you should get it without delay. I would lay down two 
maxims for your conduct: 1. Never forget any thing 
you have learned, especially in language, science, his- 
tory, chronology, antiquities, and theology. 2. Improve 
in every thing you have learned, and acquire what you 
never had, especially whatever may be useful to you in 
the work of the ministry. As to your making or com- 
posing sermons, I have no good opinion of it. Get a 
thorough knowledge of your subject : understand your 
text in all its connection and bearings, and then go into 
the pulpit depending on the Spirit of God to give you 
power to explain and illustrate to the people those ge- 
neral and particular views which you have already taken 
of your subject, and which you conscientiously believe 
to be correct and according to the word of God. But 
get nothing by heart to speak there, else even your me- 
mory will contribute to keep you in perpetual bondage. 
No man was ever a successful preacher who did not 
discuss his subject from his own judgment and ex- 
perience. The reciters of sermons may be popular ; 
but God scarcely ever employs them to convert sinners, 
or build up saints in their most holy faith. I do not re- 
commend in this case a blind reliance upon God ; taking 
a text which you do not know how to handle, and de- 
pending upon God to give you something to say. He 
will not be thus employed. Go into the pulpit with 
your understanding full of light, and your heart full of 
God ; and his Spirit will help you, and then you will 
find a wonderful assemblage of ideas coming in to your 
assistance ; and you will feel the benefit of the doctrine 
of association, of which the reciters and memory men 
can make no use. The finest, the best, and the most 
impressive thoughts are obtained in the pulpit when 
the preacher enters it with the preparation mentioned 
above. 

" As to Hebrew, I advise you to learn it with the 
points. Dr. C. Bayley's Hebrew Grammar is one of the 
best ; as it has several analyzed portions of the Hebrew 
text in it, which are a great help to learners. And 



38 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

Parkhnrst's Hebrew Lexicon exceeds all that ever went 
before it. It gives the ideal meaning of the roots with- 
out which who can understand the Hebrew language ? 
Get your verbs and nouns so well fixed in your memory 
that you shall be able to tell the conjugation, mood, 
tense, person, and number of every word ; and thus 
you will feel that you tread on sure ground as you pro- 
ceed. Genesis is the simplest book to begin with; and 
although the Psalms are highly poetic, and it is not well 
for a man to begin to acquire a knowledge of any lan- 
guage by beginning with the highest poetic production 
in it; yet the short hemistich form of the verses, and the 
powerful experimental religion which the Psalms incul- 
cate, render them comparatively easy to him who has 
the life of God in his soul. Buhner's Lyra-Pro- 
phetica, in which all the Psalms are analyzed, is a great 
help ; but the roots should be sought for in Parkhurst. 
Mr. Bell has published a good Greek grammar in 
English ; so have several others. The Greek, like the 
Hebrew, depends so much on its verbs, their formation 
and power, that, to make any thing successfully out, you 
must thoroughly acquaint yourself with them in all their 
conjugations, &c. It is no mean labour to acquire these ; 
for, in the above, even one regular verb will occur up 
ward of eight hundred different times ! Mr. Dawson 
has published a lexicon for the Greek Testament, in 
which you may find any word that occurs, with the mood, 
tense, &c. Any of the later editions of Schrevelius will 
answer your end. Read carefully Prideaux' History. 
The editions prior to 1725 are good for little ; none 
since that period has been much improved, if any thing. 
Acquaint yourself with British history. Read few ser- 
mons, they will do you little good ; those of Mr. Wesley 
excepted. The Lives of holy men will be profitable to 
you. Live in the divine life ; walk in the divine life. 
Live for the salvation of men. 1 ' 

In this letter the doctor has given his own method 
of preparing for the pulpit, and of announcing the words 
of eternal life. In the year 1825 I had the pleasure to 
travel, in company with my venerable friend, from Lon- 
don to Liverpool, for the purpose of preaching in behalf 
of the Wesleyan Methodist Sunday schools. We lodged 
under the hospitable roof of W. Comer, Esq. On 



CHRISTlAIf THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 39 

Sunday morning the doctor called me into his room, and, 
with his wonted affection, said, " Sammy, tell me what 
subject I shall take this forenoon." " Why, doctor, 
what sermons or skeletons have you brought with you ?" 
** Skeletons !" said he, " I never write skeletons, nor 
have I one line of any kind with me." At this I ex- 
pressed my surprise, knowing that he had to preach in 
Liverpool on the Sunday and Monday ; at the opening 
of Brunswick chapel, Leeds, and another new chapel in 
Bradford, in the following week ; and a missionary ser- 
mon in Lincoln, in his way homeward. He then said, 
" Read me a chapter." I took the Bible and read. — 
When I had got partly through the chapter, he inter- 
rupted me by saying, " Read that verse again ; I think 
it will do." This was done, and in a short time we 
went down to breakfast. At half past ten I proceeded 
to Mount Pleasant chapel, and he to Leeds-street, 
where he delivered, from the text I had read to him, a 
sermon, as no mean judge informed me, of the highest 
order. Now this will help to put the matter on its proper 
basis ; and unless the doctor's preaching be judged 
by the circumstances under which he appeared in the 
pulpit, justice is not done to him. The question is not, 
whether some preachers, by bending the whole of their 
strength for weeks or months to get up a sermon, and 
then preaching it again and again for many years, have 
not produced as finished a discourse as what the doctor 
in general gave ; but it is, whether we have known any 
preachers, who, without having written a word, could 
go into the pulpit on the shortest notice, and pour forth 
such a torrent of important matter, and all flowing out 
of the text, as Dr. Clarke frequently did? I trow not. 
He might not in every instance please the admirers of 
" elaborate, artificial eloquence, of studied grace and 
euphony, of methodical exactness and imaginative bril- 
liancy ;" yet he possessed, beyond all doubt, — even if 
the unbounded popularity and success of fifty years, from 
the Norman Isles in the south, to the Shetlands in the 
north, were the only proof, — the essentials of a great 
preacher. His matter was rich and various ; his heart 
was fervid ; and he excelled in the power of selecting 
from his stores, almost at once, the suitable materials for 
the instant occasion, which he poured forth with energy 



40 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

and freedom. His plan was to prepare his mind, rather 
than his paper of particular arrangements ; to keep the 
fountain full, and he knew that at his bidding it would 
flow ; and by his commanding genius he gave the pro- 
per measure and direction of the streams ; while God 
accompanied his word with an extraordinary unction of 
the Holy Spirit. Dr. Clarke's preaching was chiefly 
expository. He endeavoured to explain the terms in 
his text ; to ascertain the precise meaning of the Holy 
Ghost ; and then to apply to the understandings and 
consciences of his hearers the hallowing truths thus dis- 
covered. His preaching, though argumentative, was 
decidedly evangelical. No minister ever lived, who 
gave a greater prominence in his discourses to the vital 
truths of Christianity, or who contended for them with 
more consistency and zeal. In all his ministrations, 
there was a constant reference to the divinity and 
atonement of Christ, to the doctrines of justification 
through faith in his blood, and sanctification through 
the all-pervading and all-purifying energy of the Spirit. 
The " illimitable mercy of Heaven," the universal re- 
demption of mankind, and especially the witness of the 
Spirit to the fact of the believer's adoption into the 
family of God, and Christian perfection, were his 
favourite topics, those on which he laid the greatest 
stress; and he frequently said, that, if the Methodists 
gave up these doctrines, they would soon lose their 
glory. He had also a peculiarly happy method of de- 
scribing the simple, adapted, expeditious terms of salva- 
tion ; and was the honoured instrument of leading many 
a penitent sinner immediately to the Saviour. The 
religion which he recommended to his hearers was emi- 
nently of an experimental, practical, and happy kind ; 
such as is felt in the heart, exemplified in the life, and 
causes its possessor to " rejoice in the Lord alway, and 
again to rejoice." And all his subjects he applied with 
peculiar faithfulness, point, and expressiveness. He 
was once preaching on the love of God to man, and 
toward the conclusion of his discourse he gave a sweep 
to his arm, drawing it toward himself, and grasping his 
hand, as though he had collected in it several objects of 
value, and then, throwing them, like alms, in the full 
bounty of his soul, among the people, " Here," he said, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 41 

" take the arguments among you — make the best of 
them for your salvation — I will vouch for their solidity 
— I will stake my credit for intellect upon them. Yes, 
if it were possible to collect them into one, and suspend 
them, as you would suspend a weight, on a single hair 
of this gray head, that very hair would be found to be 
so firmly fastened to the throne of the all-merciful and 
ever loving God, that all the devils in hell might be 
defied to cut it in two." Nor was he ever " hard to be 
understood." A poor woman in Shetland uninten- 
tionally paid the following compliment to him. She had 
heard of his celebrity, and went to hear him at Lerwick. 
On her return home, she remarked, with great simpli- 
city : " They say that Dr. Clarke is a learned man, and 
I expected to find him such ; but he is only like an- 
other man ; for I could understand every word he said." 

In prayer Dr. Clarke was simple, spiritual, and some- 
times singularly ardent. He approached the throne of 
grace with a holy and reverential boldness, as if he were 
speaking to One with whom he was familiar, to One of 
whom he had an inexpressible estimation. His prayers 
" were literally collects, in which the whole collected 
meaning and ardour of his soul, for the time being, were 
darted forth at once." 

Nor did the fervour of his love to Christ, and to the 
souls of perishing sinners, cool in the least, "as days 
and months increased." When he had passed his three- 
score years, he wrote : " O Sammy ! how highly has 
God favoured you, to employ you in this work ! How 
glad I should be to be your companion ! When I could, 
I was a missionary ; and many hardships have I suf- 
fered : and I feel the same spirit still. Chasms, and bogs, 
and voes, and men, and devils would be nothing to me : 
I have met all such, in the name of Jesus, and have 
suffered, and have conquered." 

And in another letter : — " Were God to restore me to 
youth again, I would glory to be your companion, — to 
go through your thick and thin, — to lie on the ground, 
herd with the oxen, or lie down on a bottle of straw, as 
I have been obliged to do in former times. I do envy 
you. Where duty is concerned, winds, waves, and 
hyperborean regions are nothing to me. I can eat even 
the meanest things — I can dine heartily on a few pota- 



42 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

toes, and some salt, or half a pint of milk. I can wear 
a sack, if necessary ; for fine clothing I never affected. 
The S. P. are all gentlemen. I thank God I bore the 
yoke in my youth. You do not take too much upon 
you. Somebody must work ; the burthen is laid on 
you. If God spare life, I will stand by you : and he 
will, should he be pleased to take me." 

The writings of Dr. Clarke are very voluminous ; and 
for simplicity, perspicuity, and energy of style, — for 
various, extensive, and important information, — are, 
perhaps, not surpassed in this or in any other language. 
Few writers have more successfully conveyed " thoughts 
that breathe in words that burn." The measure of syl- 
lables, and the dance of periods, were beneath his notice. 
He never sacrificed sense to sound ; but communicated, 
and that without laborious effort, the treasures of his 
mind to others, in words best adapted to convey his 
meaning and most likely to be understood. The same 
great truths on which he laid such stress in his preach- 
ing, are equally prominent in his writings. On the 
" five points," all his readers know that his views were 
similar to those of the celebrated Arminius, of whom he 
entertained a high opinion, and once said to me that 
" the British public was greatly indebted to Mr. Nichols 
for his excellent translation of the Works of that emi- 
nent divine," which he warmly recommended to his 
friends, at every convenient opportunity. On the lead- 
ing subjects of revelation, the doctor spoke and wrote as 
one having authority. " For comprehension of thought, 
clear and forcible argumentation, and profound views of 
divine truth, some of his sermons," says an able re- 
viewer, '* are equal to the best of Farindon, Barrow, or 
South ; but, on the subject of personal godliness, incom- 
parably superior. We know of no sermons in which so 
much learning is brought to bear upon the all-important 
subject of experimental religion." His "Bibliographi- 
cal Dictionary," and "The Succession of Sacred Litera- 
ture," display most extraordinary research and applica- 
tion, and form a cyclopaedia on bibliographical subjects, 
worthy the attention of every student in divinity. An 
uninteresting or unimportant volume, or even pamphlet, 
Dr. Clarke never wrote. But his chief work, that on 
which he spent a laborious life, and on which his name 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 43 

will descend to posterity with greatest lustre, is his 
" Commentary on the Holy Scriptures." It is un- 
doubtedly the most critical and literary, and at the same 
time the most spiritual and practical, of any work of the 
kind, that was ever published in any living language. 
The author had an indescribable method of simplifying 
his learning ; and hence it is difficult to say whether 
the Commentary is most read and valued by the learned 
or by the unlearned, by the prince or by the peasant. 
It is a river in which an elephant may swim and a lamb 
may wade. He has not, like too many commentators, 
"each dark passage shunned ;" but has routed the ene- 
mies of revelation from every text in which they had 
endeavoured to trench themselves, and fairly met and 
satisfactorily answered their strongest objections. The 
late Rev. John Newton, calling one day upon the Rev. 
Eli Bates, and seeing the first part of Dr. Clarke's Com- 
mentary lying upon the table, happened to open it in the 
place where the doctor makes several calculations in 
reference to the size of Noah's ark. When Mr. N. had 
finished reading the criticism, he closed the book, ex- 
claiming, " Thank God ! I never found these difficulties 
in the sacred record :" to which Mr. Bates replied, 
" Yes, sir, you have found them as well as Dr. Clarke ; 
but the difference is, you always leap over them, while 
he goes through them." 

Dr. Clarke ever gave his opinion on what he consci- 
entiously believed to be the mind of the Spirit, with 
" unflinching, uncompromising, unprevaricating honesty 
and faithfulness ;" and when he has differed from com- 
monly received notions, he has done it in the most mo- 
dest, candid, and Christian manner. The following are 
the terms in which he speaks of himself: " Though 
perfectly satisfied of the purity of my motives and the 
simplicity of my intention, I am far from being pleased 
with the work itself. Whatever errors may be observed, 
must be attributed to my scantiness of knowledge. I 
do not pretend to write for the learned ; I look up to 
them myself for instruction. All the pretensions of my 
work are included in the sentence that stands in the 
title : it is ' designed as a help to a better understand- 
ing of the sacred Writings.''" To the numerous pam- 
phleteering and magazine writers that took up pen 



44 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 

against him while his Commentary was in course of 
publication, his constant reply was : " I am doing a great 
work, so that I cannot come down : why should the 
work cease, while I leave it, and come down to you?" 
In a letter to the late Rev. Joseph Hughes he says, " I 
never wrote a controversial tract in my life ; 1 have seen 
with great grief the provokings of many, and a thousand 
times has my heart said, 

Semper ego auditor tantum, nunquamque repo7iam i 
Vexatus toties ? 

But my love of peace, and detestation of religious dis- 
putes, induced me to keep within my shell, and never to 
cross the waters of strife. I had hoped, as I was living 
at least an inoffensive life, not without the most cordial 
and strenuous endeavours, in my little way, to do all the 
public and private good in my power, I might be per- 
mitted to drop quietly into the grave. But this is denied 
me." 

To some remarks of mine in 1825, he replied : "You 
say my notes on Isaiah are too short — I do not think 
so : on my plan they are as long as they should be. It 
would have been easy to have made them much longer. 
Jeremiah and Lamentations are just finishing at press. 
Ezekiel and Daniel are ready to go in, as soon as the 
others come out. And, if God spare life and health, the 
twelve minor prophets will be finished before next 
Christmas : so I see land at last in this long and dan- 
gerous voyage." 

At the conclusion of the Commentary in 1826, he 
says, "In this arduous labour I have had no assistants ; 
not even a single week's help from an amanuensis ; no 
person to look for common places, or refer to an ancient 
author ; to find out the place and transcribe a passage 
of Greek, Latin, or any other language, which my me- 
mory had generally recalled, or to verify a quotation ; — 
the help excepted which I received, in the chronological 
department, from my own nephew. I have laboured 
alone for nearly twenty-five years previously to the 
work being sent to the press ; and fifteen years have 
been employed in bringing it through the press to the 
public : and thus about forty years of my life have been 
consumed." The following observations which he 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY LIFE OF CLARKE. 45 

made in a letter to a young friend, should be more pub- 
licly known : " Mr. Wesley's Notes on the New Testa- 
ment are excellent and useful ; and, were I not fully 
convinced in the fear of God of what I am about to say, 
I would not say it. I then say, Carefully read over my 
Comment on the Scriptures. I wrote every page of it 
in reference to the ministers of the word of God, and 
especially those among the Methodists ; and I know of 
no work, be- it what it may, in which the doctrines of 
the Methodists are so clearly stated, illustrated, and 
proved." In this I heartily concur. 

At an early age Dr. Clarke took for his motto : 
"Through desire a man having separated himself, seek- 
eth and intermeddleth with all wisdom ;" and I remem- 
ber asking him, some years ago, if he would advise me 
to apply myself to the study of geology and mineralogy, 
when he promptly replied, " Yes ; a Methodist preacher 
should know every thing." He not only possessed one 
of the most select and valuable libraries in the kingdom, 
but he made such use of his opportunities as but few 
persons have done. The stores of useful knowledge 
which he amassed were prodigious. The late Rev. 
Robert Hall pronounced him to be " an ocean of learn- 
ing ;" while another eminent Baptist minister says he 
was "unquestionably the most universal scholar of his 
age." He never sought, but rather shunned, literary 
honours ; thinking himself to be undeserving of them : 
but learned and literary societies thought otherwise. 
He received, as we have seen, his diplomas of A. M. and 
LL. D. from the University and Ring's College, Aber- 
deen ; and was successively elected president of the 
Liverpool and Manchester Philological Society, — mem- 
ber of the Oriental Sub-Committee of the British and 
Foreign Bible Society, — sub-commissioner of Public 
Records, — librarian of the Surrey Institution, — fellow 
of the Antiquarian Society, — member of the Royal Irish 
Academy, — member of the American Antiquarian Soci- 
ety, — member of the Geological Society of London, — 
member of the Royal Asiatic Society, and member of 
the Eclectic Society of London. But, in a letter to his 
friend Mr. Drew, he piously observes : " Learning I 
love, — learned men I prize, — with the company of the 
great and the good I am often delighted : but, infinitely 



48 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — LIFE OF CLARKE. 

above all these and all other possible enjoyments, I 
glory in Christ, — -in me living and reigning, and fitting 
me for his heaven." 

To slavery Dr. Clarke was a most determined foe, 
considering "it and all its appendages the first brood of 
hell." In politics he was a whig; but he very seldom 
looked over the pages of a newspaper. I was with him 
when he read the "Voice from St. Helena ;" and shall 
not soon forget the terms in which he spoke of the treat- 
ment of the exiled emperor, and of the manner in which 
the last war was conducted. On several subjects both 
civil and ecclesiastical, which of late years have created 
no small stir, he wrote to me with the utmost freedom. 
These letters, for reasons which need not be men- 
tioned, are not published in this memoir of my dear and 
venerable friend, whose face I shall see no more. To 
say that I esteemed, admired, and loved him, is saying 
but little : for my esteem, and admiration, and affection 
were such-as I never felt for any other man ; and I am 
constrained to add, 

" Take him for all in all, I ne'er shall look upon his like again." 

He was a burning and a shining light ; and thousands 
for a season rejoiced in his light. He suffered, from the 
shadow of death, a momentary obscuration, and now 
appears in that region where " they that be wise shall 
shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that 
turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and 
ever." 

END OF THE LIFE. 



47 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



I. THE SCRIPTURES.* 

The Necessity of Revelation. — The absolute ne- 
cessity of a divine revelation is sufficiently established. 
If God be the sole Fountain of light and truth, all know- 
ledge must be derived from him. " The spirit of a man 
may know the things of a man ; but the Spirit of God 
can alone know and teach the things of God." That is, 
the human intellect, in its ordinary power and opera- 
tion, is sufficient to comprehend the various earthly 
things that concern man's sustenance and welfare in 
social life ; but this intellect cannot fathom the things 
of God ; it cannot find out the mind of the Most High ; 
it knows not his will ; it has no just idea of the end for 
which man was made ; of that in which his best inte- 
rests lie ; of its own nature ; of the nature of moral 
good and evil ; how to avoid the latter, and how to 
attain the former, in which true happiness, or the su- 
preme good, consists : and these things it is the province 
of divine revelation to teach, for they have never been 
taught or conceived by man. 

How unspeakably we are indebted to God for giving 
us a revelation of his will and of his works ! Is it 
possible to know the mind of God but from himself? It 
is impossible. Can those things and services which are 
worthy of, and pleasing to, an infinitely pure, perfect, 
and holy Spirit, be ever found out by reasoning and 
conjecture ? Never ; for the Spirit of God alone can 
know the mind of God ; and by this Spirit he has re- 
vealed himself to man, and in this revelation has taught 
him, not only to know the glories and perfections of the 

* For a brief account of the subjects, the author, and the date of 
every book in the Holy Scriptures, see the preface to each in Dr. 
Clarke's Commentary ; and also his " Clavis Biblica" a work that 
contains a fund of most important information in a very small 
compass. — S. D. 



48 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE SCRIPTURES. 

Creator, but also his own origin, duty, and interest. 
Thus far it was essentially necessary that God should 
reveal his will ; but if he had not given a revelation of 
his works, the origin, constitution, and nature of the 
universe could never have been adequately known. 
The world by wisdom knew not God. This is demon- 
strated by the writings of the most learned and intelli- 
gent heathens. They had no just, no rational notion 
of the origin and design of the universe. Moses alone, 
of all ancient writers, gives a consistent and rational 
account of the creation; an account which has been 
confirmed by the investigations of the most accurate 
philosophers. 

The Scriptures are Revelations from God. — 
The Scriptures of the Old and New Testament are, ge- 
nerally, through all Christian countries, and in almost 
all languages, termed, the bible, from a Greek word, 
BiSTiog, a book, as being the only book that teaches the 
knowledge of the true God ; the origin of the universe ; 
the creation and fall of man ; the commencement of the 
different nations of the earth ; the confusion of lan- 
guages ; the foundation of the church of God ; the abo- 
minable and destructive nature of idolatry and false 
worship ; the divine scheme of redemption ; the immor- 
tality of the soul ; the doctrine of the invisible and spi- 
ritual world; a future judgment; and the final retribu- 
tion of the wicked in the pains of eternal perdition, and 
of the good in the blessedness of an endless glory. 
These Scriptures we know to be revelations from 
heaven : — 

1. By the sublimity of the doctrines they contain ; 
all descriptions of God, of heaven, of the spiritual and 
eternal worlds, b^ing in every respect worthy of their 
subjects ; and, on this account, widely differing from 
the childish conceits, absurd representations, and ridicu- 
lous accounts given of such subjects in the writings of 
idolaters and superstitious religionists, in all nations of 
the earth. 

2. By the reasonableness and holiness of its precepts ; 
all its commands, exhortations, and promises, having 
the most direct tendency to make men wise, holy, and 
happy in themselves, and useful to one another. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE SCRIPTURES. 49 

3. By the miracles which they record ; miracles of 
the most astonishing nature, which could be performed 
only by the almighty power of God ; miracles which 
were wrought in the s*ight of thousands, were denied by 
none, and attested through successive ages by writers 
of the first respectability, as well enemies as friends of 
the Christian religion. 

4. By the truth of its prophecies, or predictions of 
future occurrences, which have been fulfilled exactly in 
the way, and in those times, which the predictions, de- 
livered many hundreds of years before, had pointed out. 

5. By the promises which they contain ; promises of 
pardon and peace to the penitent, of divine assistance 
and support to true believers, and of holiness and hap- 
piness to the godly, which are ever exactly fulfilled to 
all those who by faith plead them before God. 

6. By the effects which those Scriptures produce in 
the hearts and in the lives of those who piously read 
them ; it being always found that such persons become 
wiser, better, and happier in themselves, and more use- 
ful to others ; better husbands and wives ; better parents 
and children ; better governors and subjects ; and better 
friends and neighbours. While those who neglect them 
are generally a curse to themselves, a curse to society, 
and a reproach to the name of man. 

7. To these proofs may be added the poverty, and 
illiterate and defenceless state of our Lord's disciples 
and the primitive preachers of his gospel. The Jewish 
rulers and priesthood were, as one man, opposed to 
them ; they sought by every means in their power to 
prevent the preaching of Christianity in Judea ; the 
disciples were persecuted everywhere, and had not one 
man in power or authority to support them, or espouse 
their cause : yet a glorious Christian church was founded 
even at Jerusalem ; thousands received and professed 
the faith of Christ crucified, and many of them gladly 
sealed the truth with their blood. When they had 
preached the gospel throughout Judea, they went to 
the heathen, preached the gospel in different parts of 
the Lesser Asia, Greece, and Italy. In all these places 
they had to contend with the whole power and influence 
of the Roman empire, then entirely heathen, and the 
mistress of all the known world ! Christian churches, 

3 



50 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE SCRIPTURES. 

notwithstanding, were founded everywhere ; and even 
in Rome itself, the throne of the Roman emperor ! 
Here they were as defenceless as in Judea itself. They 
had to contend with all the idolatrous priests, with all 
the Greek philosophers, with the secular government, 
and with many millions of the deluded and superstitious 
populace, who, instigated by furious zeal, endeavoured 
by the most barbarous acts of persecution to support 
their false gods, idols, temples, and false worship. Yet 
before the preaching of these poor, comparatively un- 
learned, and totally defenceless men, idolatry fell pros- 
trate ; the heathen oracles were struck dumb ; the 
philosophers were confounded ; and the people were 
converted by thousands ; till at last all Asia Minor and 
Greece, with Italy, and the various parts of the Roman 
empire, received the gospel, and abolished idolatry ! 
Had not this doctrine been from God, and had not he 
by his almighty power aided these holy men, such 
effects could never have been produced. The success, 
therefore, of the unarmed and defenceless apostles and 
primitive preachers of Christianity is an incontrovertible 
proof that the gospel is a revelation from God ; that it 
is the means of conveying light aud life to the souls of 
men ; and that no power, whether earthly or diabolic, 
shall ever be able to overthrow it. It has prevailed, and 
must prevail till the whole earth shall be subdued, and 
the universe filled with the glory of God. Amen. 

This revelation is now complete. God will add no- 
thing more to it, because it contains every thing neces- 
sary for men, both in reference to this world and that 
which is to come ; and he has denounced the heaviest 
judgments against those who shall add to it, or diminish 
any thing from it. 

The oldest records among both Jews and Christians 
mention the books, both by number and name, which 
constitute the Old Testament Scriptures, and these are 
the identical books, both in number and name, that 
remain in the Hebrew canon to the present day. Not 
one has been added ; not one has been taken away. 
Nor have we the slightest evidence that even one chap- 
ter or paragraph, in any one of the books come down to 
us, has been either added or omitted. And it is the 
same with the New Testament : we have not lost or 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE SCRIPTURES. 51 

received a single book or chapter which the genuine 
church of God has ever accounted divinely inspired and 
canonical. I have diligently examined this question in 
all the accounts we have from antiquity ; and in all the 
collections of Hebrew and Greek MSS., both of the Old 
and New Testament, and their various readings, which 
the ablest critics have produced to public view, and 
some of the chief of those MSS. I have collated myself, 
and most, if not all, of the ancient versions, and I can 
conscientiously say that we have the sacred oracles, 
at least in essential sum and substance, as they were 
delivered by God to Moses and the prophets ; and to 
the church of Christ by Jesus, his evangelists and 
apostles ; and that nothing in the various readings of 
the Hebrew and Greek MSS. can be found to strengthen 
any error in doctrine, or obliquity in moral practice. 
All is safe and sound, — all pure and holy : it is the per- 
fect law of the Lord, that converts the soul ; the testi- 
mony of the Lord, that abideth for ever; and the un- 
adulterated gospel of Jesus Christ, which is able to 
make men wise unto salvation, through faith in him. 
This is the testimony of one who has examined this 
subject from the beginning to the end. And may I not 
ask, Is not such a testimony infinitely superior to the 
rash and bold assumptions of such men as are slaves to 
their passions, who find from the unholiness of their 
own hearts, and the irregularity of their lives, that it is 
their interest to find that called the word of God to be 
false or spurious, because they have too much reason to 
dread the perdition of ungodly men, of which the Scrip* 
tures so amply treat? I might add, too, the superiority 
of such a testimony to that of those bold and presump- 
tuous men who have never examined the question, and 
who were as incapable of examining the streams which 
have proceeded from the fountain, as they were of 
tracing those streams to the fountain itself! Of what 
worth is the testimony of such men against the testi- 
mony of God, and of the whole church of Christ, through 
all ages ; and of the best, wisest, and most learned men 
that ever existed ? Well may it be said here, and said 
with triumph, "What is the chaff to the wheat? saith 
the Lord." 

Who then are they who cry out, "The Bible is a 



52 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE SCRIPTURES. 

fable ?" Those who have never read it, or read it only 
with the fixed purpose to gainsay it. I once met with 
a person who professed to disbelieve every tittle of the 
New Testament, a chapter of which, he acknowledged, 
he had never read. I asked him, had he ever read the 
Old ? He answered, No ! And yet this man had the 
assurance to reject the whole as an imposture ! God 
has mercy on those whose ignorance leads them to 
form prejudices against the truth ; but he confounds 
those who take them up through envy and malice, and 
endeavour to communicate them to others. 

The men who can despise and ridicule this sacred 
book are those who are too blind to discover the objects 
presented to them by this brilliant light, and are too 
sensual to feel and relish spiritual things. 

The book of Genesis is the most ancient record in 
the world; including the history of two grand subjects, 
Creation and Providence ; of each of which it gives a 
summary, but astonishingly minute and detailed account. 
From this book almost all the ancient philosophers, 
astronomers, chronologists, and historians have taken 
their respective data ; and all the modern improvements 
and accurate discoveries in different arts and sciences 
have only served to confirm the facts detailed by Moses ; 
and to show that all the ancient writers on these subjects 
have approached to or receded from truth and the 
phenomena of nature, in proportion as they have fol- 
lowed the Mosaic history. 

The works of Moses, we may justly say, have been a 
kind of text book to almost every writer on geology, 
geography, chronology, astronomy, natural history, 
ethics, jurisprudence, political economy, theology, po- 
etry, and criticism, from his time to the present day ; 
books to which the choicest writers and philosophers in 
pagan antiquity have been deeply indebted, and which 
were the text books to all the prophets ; books from 
which the flimsy writers against divine revelation have 
derived their natural religion and all their moral excel- 
lence ; books written in all the energy and purity of 
the incomparable language in which they are composed ; 
and finally, books which, for importance of matter, va- 
riety of information, dignity of sentiment, accuracy of 
facts, impartiality, simplicity, and sublimity of narration, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE SCRIPTURES. 53 

tending to improve and ennoble the intellect, and me- 
liorate the physical and moral condition of man, have 
never been equalled, and can only be paralleled by the 
gospel of the Son of God ! Fountain of endless mercy, 
justice, truth, and beneficence ! how much are thy gifts 
and bounties neglected by those who do not read this 
law ; and by those who, having read it, are not morally 
improved by it, and made wise unto salvation ! 

Had not the history of Joseph formed a part of the 
sacred Scriptures, it would have been published in all 
the living languages of man, and read throughout the 
universe ! But it contains " the things of God," and to 
all such the " carnal mind is enmity." 

Numerous prophecies, long previously delivered, and 
in the keeping of those who in the days of Christ's flesh 
were his most inveterate enemies, had announced his 
approach, described his person, detailed his sufferings, 
showed forth his death and resurrection, and foretold 
the propagation and influence of his religion over the 
earth. From this fountain of light and salvation a new 
race of inspired authors proceeded, who shone with that 
clear and steady light which they received from Him, 
and reflected his brightness throughout the universe. It 
is worthy of remark that, notwithstanding the most nu- 
merous and the most eminent writers that ever adorned 
the republic of letters sprang from this light of life and 
truth, yet He himself was never known to write but 
once, John viii, 8, and that in the dust, in reference to a 
sinner who was brought to be condemned by him ; — and 
what he then wrote no man knows, as he did not think 
proper to hand it down to posterity. 

The facts which St. Luke mentions, chap, iii, 1, 2, 
tend much to confirm the truth of the evangelical history. 
Christianity differs widely from philosophic system ; it 
is founded in the goodness and authority of God ; and 
attested by historic facts. It differs also from popular 
tradition, which either has had no pure origin, or which 
is lost in unknown or fabulous antiquity. It differs also 
from pagan and Mohammedan revelations, which were 
fabricated in a corner, and had no witnesses. In the 
above verses we find the persons, the places, and the 
times marked with the utmost exactness. It was under 
the first Cesars that the preaching of the gospel took 



54 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE SCRIPTURES. 

place ; and in their time the facts on which the whole 
of Christianity is founded made their appearance : an 
age the most enlightened and best known from the 
multitude of its historic records. It was in Judea, 
where every thing that professed to come from God was 
scrutinized with the most exact and unmerciful criticism. 
In writing the history of Christianity, the evangelists 
appeal to certain facts which were publicly transacted in 
such places, under the government and inspection of 
such and such persons, and in such particular times. A 
thousand persons could have confronted the falsehood, 
had it been one. These appeals are made — a challenge 
is offered to the Roman government, and to the Jewish 
rulers and people — a new religion has been introduced 
in such a place, at such a time — this has been accompa- 
nied with such and such facts and miracles ! Who can 
disprove this? All are silent. None appears to offer 
even an objection. The cause of infidelity and irreligion 
is at stake ! If these facts cannot be disproved, the reli- 
gion of Christ must triumph. None appears, because 
none could appear. Now, let it be observed that the 
persons of that time, only, could confute these thiugs 
had they been false; they never attempted it; therefoie 
these facts are absolute and incontrovertible truths : 
this conclusion is necessary. Shall a man, then, give 
up his faith in such attested facts as these, because, more 
than a thousand years after, an infidel creeps out, and 
ventures publicly to sneer at what his iniquitous soul 
hopes is not true ? 

How impartial is the history that God writes ! We 
may see, from several commentators, what man would 
have done, had he had the same facts to relate. The 
history given by God details as well the vices as the 
virtues of those who are its subjects. How widely dif- 
ferent from that in the Bible is the biography of the 
present day ! Virtuous acts that were never performed, 
voluntary privations which were never borne, piety 
which was never felt, and, in a word, lives which were 
never lived, are the principal subjects of our biographi- 
cal relation. These may be well termed the Lives of 
the Saints, for to these are attributed all the virtues 
which can adorn the human character, with scarcely a 
failing or a blemish ; while, on the other hand, those in 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE SCRIPTURES. 55 

general mentioned in the sacred writings stand marked 
with deep shades. What is the inference which a reflect- 
ing mind, acquainted with human nature, draws from a 
comparison of the biography of the Scriptures with that 
of uninspired writers? The inference is this — the 
Scripture history is natural, is probable, bears all the 
characteristics of veracity, narrates circumstances which 
seem to make against its own honour, yet dwells on 
them, and often seeks occasion to repeat them. It is 
true ! infallibly true ! In this conclusion common sense, 
reason, and criticism join. On the other hand, of biogra- 
phy in general, we must say that it is often unnatural, 
improbable ; is destitute of many of the essential charac- 
teristics of truth ; studiously avoids mentioning those 
circumstances which are dishonourable to its subject ; 
ardently endeavours either to cast those which it cannot 
wholly hide into deep shades, or sublime them into vir- 
tues. This is notorious, and we need not go far for nu- 
merous examples. From these facts a reflecting mind 
will draw this general conclusion — an impartial history, 
in every respect true, can be expected only from God 
himself. 

The sacred writings contain such proofs of a divine 
origin that, though all the dead were to rise to convince 
an unbeliever of the truths therein declared, the convic- 
tion could not be greater, nor the proofs more evident, 
of the divinity and truth of those sacred records, than 
that which themselves afford. 

How Revelation has been given. — God commu- 
nicated the Scripture in ancient times to holy men, by 
the inspiration of his own Spirit, avIio carefully wrote 
it down, and delivered it to those to whom it was at 
first more immediately sent ; and they have handed it 
down from generation to generation, without addition, 
defalcation, or wilful corruption of any kind. 

In many cases the silence of Scripture is not less 
instructive than its most pointed communications. 

There is sufficient evidence from the Scriptures them- 
selves, that the Revelation of the Divine Will was given 
to men in the five following ways : — 

1. By the personal appearance of Him who is termed 
" the Angel of the covenant," and " the Angel in whom 



56 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE SCRIPTURES. 

was the name of Jehovah ;" who was afterward revealed 
as the Saviour of mankind. 

2. By an audible voice, sometimes accompanied by 
emblematical appearances. 

3. By the ministry of angels, often working miracles. 

4. By dreams and visions of the night, or in trances 
by day. 

5. But the most common way was by direct inspira- 
tion by the powerful agency of God on the mind, giving 
it a strong conception and supernatural persuasion of 
the truth of the things which he revealed to the under- 
standing. 

Why is it that God has observed so slow a climax in 
bringing the necessary knowledge of his will and their 
interest to mankind? For instance, giving a little under 
the patriarchal, an increase under the Mosaic, and the 
fulness of the blessing under the gospel dispensation? 
It is true, he could have given the whole in the begin- 
ning to Adam, to Noah, to Abraham, or any other of 
the ante or post-diluvian fathers ; but that this would 
not have as effectually answered the divine purpose, 
may be safely asserted. 

God, like his instrument, nature, delights in progres- 
sion ; and although the works of both, in semine, were 
finished from the beginning, nevertheless they are not 
brought forward to actual and complete existence, but 
by various accretions. And this appears to be done 
that the blessings resulting from both may be properly 
valued, as, in their approach, men have time to discover 
their necessities ; and, when relieved, after a thorough 
consciousness of their urgency, they see and feel 
the propriety of being grateful to their kind Bene- 
factor. 

Were God to bestow his blessings before the want of 
them were truly felt, men could not be properly grate- 
ful for the reception of blessings the value of which 
they had not known by previously feeling the want of 
them. God gives his blessings that they may be duly 
esteemed, and he himself become the sole object of our 
dependence : and this end he secures by a gradual 
communication of his bounties as they are felt to be 
necessary. To give them all at once would defeat his 
own intention, and leave us unconscious of our depend- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE SCRIPTURES. 57 

ence on and debt to his grace. He, therefore, brings 
forward his various dispensations of mercy and love, as 
he sees men prepared to receive and value them ; and 
as the receipt of the grace of one dispensation makes 
way for another, and the soul is thereby rendered capa- 
ble of more extended views and communications, so the 
divine Being causes every succeeding dispensation to 
exceed that which preceded it : on this ground we find 
a climax of dispensations, and in each a progressive, 
graduated scale of light, life, power, and holiness. 

The Use of Revelation.— The word torak or law 
comes from the root yarah, which signifies to " aim at, 
teach, point out, direct, lead, guide, make straight or 
even ;" and from these significations of the word (and 
in all these senses it is used in the Bible) we may see at 
once the nature, properties, and design of the law of 
God. It is a system of instruction in righteousness ; 
it teaches the difference between moral good and evil ; 
ascertains what is right and fit to be done, and what 
should be left undone, because improper to be per- 
formed. It continually aims at the glory of God, and 
the happiness of his creatures ; teaches the true know- 
ledge of the true God, and the destructive nature of 
sin ; points out the absolute necessity of an atonement 
as the only means by which God can be reconciled to 
transgressors ; and in its very significant rites and cere- 
monies points out the Son of God, till he should come 
to put away iniquity by the sacrifice of himself. It is 
a revelation of God's wisdom and goodness, wonderfully 
well calculated to direct the hearts of men into the 
truth, to guide their feet into the path of life, and to 
make straight, even, and plain, that way which leads to 
God, and in which the soul must walk in order to arrive 
at eternal life. It is the fountain whence every correct 
notion relative to God — his perfections, providence, 
grace, justice, holiness, omniscience, and omnipotence — 
has been derived. And it has been the origin whence 
all the true principles of law and justice have been 
deduced. The pious study of it was the grand means 
of producing the greatest kings, the most enlightened 
statesmen, the most accomplished poets, and the most 
holy and useful men that ever adorned the woild. It 

3* 



58 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE SCRIPTURES. 

is exceeded only by the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is 
at once the accomplishment of its rites and predictions, 
and the fulfilment of its grand plan and outline. As a 
system of teaching or instruction, it is the most sove- 
reign and most effectual ; as by it is the knowledge of 
sin ; and it alone is the schoolmaster that leads men to 
Christ, that they may bs justified through faith, Gal. 
iii, 24. Who can absolutely ascertain the exact quan- 
tum of obliquity in a crooked line, without the applica- 
tion of a straight one? And could sin, in all its 
twistings, windings, and varied involutions, have ever 
been truly ascertained, had not God given to man this 
perfect rule to judge by ? The nations who acknow- 
ledge this revelation of God have, as far as they attend 
to its dictates, the wisest, purest, most equal, and most 
beneficial laws. The nations that do not receive it have 
laws at once extravagantly severe and extravagantly 
indulgent. The proper distinctions between moral good 
and evil, in such states, are not known : hence the penal 
sanctions are not founded on the principles of justice, 
weighing the exact proportion of mora] turpitude ; but 
on the most arbitrary caprices, which in many cases 
show the utmost indulgence to first-rate crimes, while 
they punish minor offences with rigour and cruelty. 
What is the consequence? Just what might be rea- 
sonably expected : the will and caprice of man being 
put in the place of the wisdom of God, the government 
is oppressive, and the people, frequently goaded to dis- 
traction, rise up in a mass and overturn it; so that the 
monarch, however powerful for a time, seldom lives out 
half his days. This was the case in Greece, in Rome, 
in the major part of the Asiatic governments, and is the 
case in all nations of the world to the present day, w r here 
the government is despotic, and the laws not formed 
according to the revelation of God. 

The word lex, " law," among the Romans, has been 
derived from lego, " I read," because when a law or 
statute was made, it was hung up in the most public 
places, that it might be seen, read, and known by all 
men ; that those who were to obey the laws might not 
break them through ignorance, and thus incur the penalty. 
This was called pro mulgatio legis, quasi provulgatio, 
•' the promulgation of the law," that is, the laying it be- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE SCRIPTURES. 59 

fore the common people. Or from ligo, " I bind," because 
the law binds men to the strict observance of its pre- 
cepts. The Greeks call a law vouog nomos, from veuo 
" to divide, distribute, minister to, or serve," because the 
law divides to all their just rights, appoints or distri- 
butes to each his proper duty, and thus serves or minis- 
ters to the welfare of the individual, and the support of 
society. Hence, where there are either no laws, or 
unequal and unjust ones, all is distraction, violence, 
rapine, oppression, anarchy, and ruin. 

" The sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God," 
cuts every way ; it convinces of sin, righteousness, and 
judgment ; pierces between the joints and the marrow, 
divides between the soul and the spirit, dissects the 
whole mind, and exhibits a regular anatomy of the soul. 
It not only reproves and exposes sin, but it slays the 
ungodly, pointing out and determining the punishment 
they shall endure. 

" It is a critic of the propensities and suggestions of 
the heart." How many have felt this property of God's 
word where it has been faithfully preached ! How often 
has it happened that a man has seen the whole of his 
own character, and some of the most private transac- 
tions of his life, held up as it were to public view by the 
preacher ; and yet the parties absolutely unknown to 
each other ! Some, thus exhibited, have even supposed 
that their neighbours must hajre privately informed the 
preacher of their character and conduct ; but it was the 
word of God, which, by the direction and energy of the 
divine Spirit, thus searched them out, was li a critical 
examiner of the propensities and suggestions of their 
hearts," and had pursued them through all their public 
haunts and private ways. Every genuine minister of 
the gospel has witnessed such effects as these under his 
ministry in repeated instances. 

The law of God is a code of instruction, in which God 
makes himself known in the holiness and justice of his 
nature, his displacence at siu, and his love of righteous- 
ness ; — as also to manifest himself in the magnitude of 
his mercy, and readiness to save. In a word, it is God's 
system of instruction by which men are taught the know- 
ledge of their Creator and of themselves — directed how 
to walk so as to please God — redeemed from crooked 



60 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE SCRIPTURES. 

paths — and guided in the way that leads to everlasting 
life. This is the Bible — The Book, by way of eminence 
— the Book made by God — the only book that is with- 
out blemish or error — the book that contains the truth, 
the whole truth, and nothing but the truth : that 
without which we should have known little about God, 
less concerning ourselves, and nothing about heaven, 
the resurrection, or a future state : the book that con- 
tains the greatest mass of learning ever put together — 
the book from which all the sages of antiquity have, 
directly or indirectly, derived their knowledge : by means 
of which, the nations who have studied it most, and 
known it best, have formed the wisest code of laws, and 
have become the wisest and the most powerful nations of 
the earth. 

The revelation which God has given of himself is a 
perfect system of instruction. It reveals no more than 
we ought to know; it keeps nothing back that would be 
profitable. It gives us a proper view of the nature and 
authority of the Lawgiver. It shows the right he has to 
govern us. 

All well constituted and wisely enacted laws are for 
the benefit of the subjects. This is emphatically the 
case with the law of God. He needs not our allegiance 
— he wants not our tribute. He is infinitely perfect, and 
needs nothing that we can bring. There was the utmost 
necessity for this law : — he that is without law is with- 
out reason and rule. He has no line to walk by — 
nothing to teach, restrain, or correct him. He is led 
astray by his passions ; and lives to his own ruin and 
destruction. God in his mercy has given him a law to 
bind, to instruct, and to lead him. In this law he has 
shown man at once his duty and his interest. 

The revelation of God is the mind of God made 
known to man ; and the mind is not truer to itself, than 
the inspired writings are to the mind and purpose of 
God. 

All God's commandments lead to purity, enjoin 
purity, and point out that sacrificial offering by which 
cleansing and purification are acquired. 

How true is that word, " The law of the Lord is per- 
fect !" In a small compass, and in a most minute 
detail, it comprises every thing that is calculated tc 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THF. SCRIPTURES. 01 

instruct, direct, convince, correct, and fortify the mind 
of man. Whatever has a tendency to corrupt or injure 
man, that it forbids ; whatever is calculated to comfort 
him, promote and secure his best interests, that it com- 
mands. It takes him in all possible states, views him in 
all connections, and provides for his present and eternal 
happiness. 

As the human soul is polluted and tends to pollution, 
the great doctrine of the law is " holiness to the Lord." 
This it keeps invariably in view in ail its commands, 
precepts, ordinances, rites, and ceremonies. And how 
forcibly in alL these does it say, " Thou shalt love the 
Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, 
and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength ; and 
thy neighbour as thyself!" This is the prominent doc- 
trine of the Bible ; and this shall be fulfilled in all them 
who believe, for " Christ is the end of the law for right- 
eousness to them that believe." Reader, magnify God for 
his law, for by it is the knowledge of sin ; and magnify 
him for his gospel, for by this is the cure of sin. Let 
the law be thy schoolmaster to bring thee to Christ, that 
thou mayest be justified by faith ; and that the right- 
eousness of the law may be fulfilled in thee, and that thou 
mayest walk, not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 

The law is not to be considered as a system of ex- 
ternal rites and ceremonies ; nor even as a rule of moral 
action. It is a spiritual system ; it reaches to the most 
hidden purposes, thoughts, dispositions, and desires of 
the heart and soul ; and it reproves and condemns every 
thing, without hope of reprieve or pardon, that is con- 
trary to eternal truth and rectitude. 

The law could not pardon : the law could not sanctifv ; 
the law could not dispense with its own requisitions ; it 
is the rule of righteousness, and therefore must condemn 
unrighteousness. This is its unalterable nature. Had 
there been perfect obedience to its dictates, instead of 
condemning, it would have applauded and rewarded ; 
but as the flesh, the carnal and rebellious principle, had 
prevailed, and transgression had taken place, it was 
rendered weak, inefficient to undo this work of the flesh, 
and bring the sinner into a state of pardon and accept- 
ance with God. 

Where the law ends, Christ begins. The law ends 



63 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE SCRIPTURES. 

with representative sacrifices ; Christ begins with the 
real offering. The law is our schoolmaster to lead us to 
Christ; it cannot save, but it leaves us at his door, 
where alone salvation is to be found. Christ, as an 
atoning sacrifice for sin, was the grand object of the 
whole sacrificial code of Moses ; his passion and death 
were the fulfilment of its great object and design. 
Separate this sacrificial death of Christ from the law, 
and the law has no meaning, for it is impossible that the 
blood of bulls and goats should take away sins. 

Take Jesus, his grace, Spirit, and religion out of the 
Bible, and it has neither scope, design, object, nor end. 

The gospel is God's method of saving a lost wc-rld, in 
a way which that world could never have imagined. 
There is nothing human in it ; it is all truly and glori- 
ously divine, essentially necessary to the salvation of 
man, and fully adequate to the purposes of its institution. 

Every language is confounded, less or more, but 
that of eternal truth. This is ever the same ; in all 
countries, climates, and ages, the language of truth, like 
that God from whom it sprang, is unchangeable. It 
speaks in all tongues, to all nations, and in all hearts : 
" There is one God, the Fountain of goodness, justice, 
and truth. Man, thou art his creature, ignorant, weak, 
and dependent; but he is all-sufficient — hates nothing 
that he has made — loves thee — is able and willing to save 
thee ; return to and depend on him, take his revealed 
will for thy law, submit to his authority, and accept 
eternal life on the terms proposed in his word, and thou 
shalt never perish nor be wretched." This language of 
truth all the ancient and modern Babel-builders have not 
been able to confound, notwithstanding their repeated 
attempts. How have men toiled to make this language 
clothe their own ideas; and thus cause God to speak 
according to the pride, prejudice, and worst passions of 
men! But through a just judgment of God, the lan- 
guage of all those who have attempted to do this has 
been confounded, and the word of the Lord abideth for 
ever. 

All should know the Scriptures. — The Holy 
Scriptures are plain enough; but the heart of man is 
darkened by sin. The Bible does not so much need a 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — GOD. 63 

comment, as the soul does the light of the Holy Spirit. 
Were it not for the darkness of the human intellect, 
the things relative to salvation would be easily appre- 
hended. 

Nothing can be more preposterous and monstrous 
than to call people to embrace the doctrines of Chris- 
tianity, and refuse them the opportunity of consulting the 
book in which they are contained. Persons who are 
denied the use of the sacred writings may be manufac- 
tured into different forms and modes ; and be mechani- 
cally led to believe certain dogmas, and perform certain 
religious acts ; but without the use of the Scriptures 
they never can be intelligent Christians ; they do not 
search the Scriptures, and therefore they cannot know 
Him of whom these Scriptures testify. 

IL— GOD. 

Many attempts have been made to define the term 
God.* As to the word itself, it is pure Anglo-Saxon, 
and among our ancestors signified, not only the divine 
Being, now commonly designated by the word, but also 
good; as in their apprehensions it appeared that God 
and good were correlative terms ; and when they thought 
or spoke of him they were doubtless led from the word 
itself to consider him as The Good Being, a Fountain 
of infinite benevolence and beneficence toward his 
creatures. 

A general definition of this great First Cause, as far 
as human words dare attempt one, may be thus given : 
The eternal, independent, and self-existent Being : the 
Being whose purposes and actions spring from himself, 
without foreign motive or influence : he who is abso- 
lute in dominion ; the most pure, the most simple, and 
most spiritual of all essences ; infinitely benevolent, 
beneficent, true, and. holy: the cause of all being, the 
upholder of all things ; infinitely happy, because infi- 
nitely perfect ; and eternally self-sufficient, needing no- 
thing that he has made ; illimitable in his immensity, 

* Those who wish to see an attempt to demonstrate, by argu- 
ments a priori and a posteriori, the necessary existence of a 
supreme and eternal Being, are referred to the doctor's Com- 
mentary, Heb. xi, at4he end. — S. D. 



64 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY GOD. 

inconceivable in his mode of existence, and indescribable 
in his essence ; known fully only to himself, because an 
infinite mind can be fully apprehended only by itself — 
in a word, a Being who, from his infinite wisdom, can- 
not err or be deceived ; and who, from his infinite good- 
ness, can do nothing but what is eternally just, right, 
and kind. Reader, such is the God of the Bible; but 
how widely different from the God of most human 
creeds and apprehensions ! 

The Being called '-' God" is allowed by all who think 
rightly on the subject to be a living, rational Essence. 

A. He is an Essence; that is, something that exists, 
and exists distinctly from every thing : and is an inde- 
pendent Essence or Being ; it exists of or by itself; is 
not connected with any other to be preserved in exist- 
ence ; so that were all other essences destroyed this 
would still subsist ; and this must imply that this Essence 
must be underived, else it could not be independent : 
and the destruction of its principle must necessarily in- 
volve its destruction also ; for all effects must cease 
with their producing causes. 

As therefore this Essence is independent and unde- 
rived, existing of and by itself, it must also be eternal : 
for as it is the First Cause, and independent of all 
other kinds of being, so it cannot be affected by any 
other ; and cannot destroy itself, for this would suppose 
it to possess a power superior to itself, which is absurd ; 
and as nothing else can destroy it. and it cannot destroy 
itself, it must therefore be eternal. 

If all other beings be derived beings, (that is, cannot 
be the cause of their own existence,) and this is the only 
first and un originated Cause, therefore all others must 
owe their being to it, and be dependent on it. This 
Being then is the Creator and Preserver of all things: 
and this is the general notion entertained of God. 

B. I have said above that this Being is considered as 
a living- Essence. — This distinguishes him from matter, 
from all chaos, or first seeds, or principles of things ; 
and from all inerticB or vis inertia — that disposition of 
matter by which it resists all endeavours to alter its 
state of rest: and as life implies an active, operative 
existence, so it is properly applied to God, from whose 
life comes the living principle of all things ; and by 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— GOD. 6 r 

whose activity or energy comes all life, and all the 
operations of animate and inanimate beings. 

C. He is called a rational Essence. — As reason im- 
plies that faculty whereby we discern good from evil, 
right from wrong, so in the divine Essence it implies a 
boundless knowledge or sagacity, by which it compre- 
hends all ideas of all things that do or can exist, with 
all their relations, connections, combinations, uses, and 
ends. Such a rational essence is God ; and as he is the 
cause of all being, so all reason, sagacity, knowledge 
and understanding, come from him. 

Thus we find that he is the most excellent, and most 
perfect, of all living and rational essences ; and what- 
ever excellence or perfection is found in any being must 
be derived from himself. 

D. This Essence is the most excellent. — Excellence 
signifies a surpassing- or going- beyond others in grand 
or useful qualities. Whatever of this sort we see in 
any being, — whatever we hear has been possessed by 
any, — and whatever we can conceive possible to be 
possessed by any, — God excels all this, and infinitely 
more than this ; and therefore he is the most excellent 
of all essences. 

E. This Essence is the most perfect. — Perfection sig- 
nifies any thing complete, consummate ; in every re- 
spect made and finished ; so that nothing is wanting, 
nothing redundant ; and, in a moral sense, which is 
entirely pure, unblamable and immaculate; or that 
which in every moral and spiritual respect has consum- 
mate excellence: so God, as being the cause of all that 
is great, good, immaculate and excellent, is himself the 
most perfect of all essences ; for we can conceive of 
nothing that can be added to his excellence, to make it 
greater or more perfect than it is ; and we can conceive 
of no perfection that he does not possess in an absolute 
and unlimited manner. 

Adonai is the word which the Jews in reading always 
substitute for Jehovah, as they count it impious to pro- 
nounce this name. Adonai signifies my director, basis, 
supporter, prop, or stay; and scarcely a more appro- 
priate name can be given to that God who is the framer 
and director of every righteous word and action ; the 
basis or foundation on which every rational hope rests ; 



66 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. 

the supporter of the souls and bodies of men, as well as 
of the universe in general ; the prop and stay of the 
weak and fainting ; and the buttress that shores up the 
building which otherwise must necessarily fall. This 
word often occurs in the Hebrew Bible, and is rendered 
in our translation " Lord ;" the same term by which the 
word "Jehovah" is expressed: but to distinguish be- 
tween the two, and to show the reader when the original 
is Jehovah, and when Adonai, the first is always put in 
capitals, Lord, the latter in plain Romaji characters, 
Lord. 

Lord and God are frequently interchanged ; but every 
Lord is not God. It is the dominion of a spiritual 
Being or Lord, that constitutes God ; true dominion, 
true God ; supreme dominion, the supreme God ; feigned 
dominion, the false god. He governs all things that 
exist, and knows all things that are to be known. He 
is not eternity, nor infinity : but he is eternal and infi- 
nite. He is not duration, nor space ; but he endures 
always, is present everywhere ; and by existing always 
and everywhere, he constitutes the very things dura- 
tion and space, eternity and infinity. 

The nature of God is illimitable, and all the attributes 
of that nature infinitely glorious : they cannot be less- 
ened by the transgressions of his creatures, nor can they 
be increased by the uninterrupted, eternal obedience, 
and increasing hallelujahs, of all the intelligent crea- 
tures that people the whole vortex of nature. 

III.— ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. 

This Jehovah is a Being of such infinite perfections, 
that no defect in him can be imagined ; nor can we con- 
ceive any thing that might raise, improve, or exalt his 
nature. Because he is an infinite fulness, nothing can 
be added : and because he fills all space — the heavens 
and the earth, and inhabits eternity — nothing can be 
taken away from him. Whatever exists must necessa- 
rily be his creature, or an effect produced by him, the 
supreme First Cause. As he is independent and self- 
sufficient, he needs nothing that he has made. From 
eternity he existed without any other kind of being; 
and when he chose to create innumerable beings of end- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ATTRIBUTES Of GOD. 67 

ifessly varied natures, and possessing various degrees of 
relative perfection, he still continued to be the same in- 
dependent being; all others deriving their existence and 
support from him. 

Unity.-— There is one God* who is self-existing, un- 
created, infinitely wise, powerful, and good ; who is 
present in every place ; and fills the heavens, and earth, 
and all things. Now, as this one God is eternal, that 
is, without beginning or end, and is present everywhere, 
and fills all space, there can be only one such Being ; 
for there cannot *be two or more eternals, or two or 
more who are present everywhere, and fill all things. 
To suppose more than one supreme source of infinite 
wisdom, power, and all perfections, is to assert that 
there is no supreme Being in existence. A plurality of 
eternal beings would resemble a plurality of universes, 
eternities, and infinite spaces ; all which would be con- 
tradictory and absurd. 

Spirituality. — We must not attempt to form con- 
ceptions of the supreme Being as if confined to form, 
to any kind of limits, to any particular space or place. 
As Jehovah, he is in every respect inconceivable ; — no 
mind can grasp him ; — he is an infinite Spirit ; — equally 
in every place, and in all points of duration ; — he can- 
not be more present in one place than in another, 
because he fills the heavens and the earth, though the 
manifestations of his presence may be more in particu- 
lar places and especial times. His working shows that 
he is here and present; though he would be no less pre- 
sent, were there no apparent working. He is not like 
man, though, in condescension to our weakness, he 
represents himself often as possessing human members 
and human affections. When a thing is said to be done 
by the finger, the hand, or the arm of God, — this only 
points out degrees of power manifested in performing 
certain works of mercy, providence, deliverance, &c. 
And these degrees of power are always in proportion to 
the work that is to be effected. The finger may indi- 
cate a comparatively slight interference, where a miracle 
is wrought ; but not one that is stupendous : the hand, 
one where great power is necessary, accompanied by 



68 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. 

evident skill and design : and the arm, one in which 
the mighty power of God comes forward with sovereign, 
overwhelming, irresistible effect. When the shoulder 
is attributed to him, it points out his almighty sustaining 
power, — maintaining his government of the world, and 
of his church; — supporting whatever he has made; — 
so his heart represents his concern for his own honour, 
for the welfare of his followers, and for the afflicted and 
distressed. 

This one infinite and eternal Being is a Spirit : that 
is, he is not compounded, nor made up of parts ; for 
then he would be nothing different from matter, which 
is totally void of intelligence and power. And hence he 
must be invisible ; for a spirit cannot be seen by the 
eye of man : nor is there any thing in this principle 
contradictory to reason or experience. We all know 
there is such a thing as the air we breathe, as the wind 
that whistles through the trees, fans and cools our 
bodies, and sometimes tears up mighty trees from their 
roots, overturns the strongest buildings, and agitates the 
vast ocean : but no man has ever seen this air or wind ; 
though every one is sensible of its effects, and knows 
that it exists. Now, it would be as absurd to deny the 
existence of God because we cannot see him, as it would 
be to deny the existence of the air or wind because we 
cannot see it. 

God is a Spirit: he is nothing like man, nothing like 
matter, nothing like any of the creatures that he has 
made. For, although he be a Spirit, and he have cre- 
ated innumerable spirits, yet he has nothing in common 
with them. He is a Spirit, an impalpable substance 
of a widely different kind. As far as his nature tran- 
scends all created nature ; so far does his spirituality 
transcend the spirituality of all created spirits. 

Spirit is denned, " an uncompounded, immaterial 
substance." Let us not be alarmed at the word sub- 
stance, which many compound with m,atter. Substance 
is subsistence, whether material or immaterial ; but 
spirit is immaterial substance, and consequently un- 
compounded and indivisible. And from the ineffable 
spirituality of the divine Nature, we can at once con- 
ceive that he has no parts : he is unlimited, infinite, and 
eternal. He cannot be seen by the eye ; but he may 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. 60 

be perceived by the mind. He is not palpable to the 
hand ; but he may be felt by the soul. By his mighty 
working, the most powerful and salutary changes may 
be wrought in the mind, which it at once perceives to be 
supernatural, and which, from the holiness of the effects, 
it knows to be the work of God. 

Eternity. — What is most interesting is the name by 
which God was pleased to make himself known to 
Moses and the Israelites, a name by which the supreme 
Being was afterward known among the wisest inhabit- 
ants of the earth ;4ie who is and who will be what he 
is. This is a proper characteristic of the divine Being, 
who is, properly speaking, the only Being, because he 
is independent and eternal ; whereas, all other beings, 
in whatsoever forms they may appear, are derived, 
finite, changeable, and liable to destruction, decay, and 
even to annihilation. When God, therefore, announced 
himself to Moses by this name, he proclaimed his own 
eternity and immateriality ; and the very name itself 
precluded the possibility of idolatry, because it was im- 
possible for the mind, in considering it, to represent the 
divine Being in an assignable shape ; for who could 
represent being or existence by any limited form? 
And who can have any idea of a form that is unlimited ? 
Thus, then, we find that the first discovery which God 
made of himself was intended to show the people the 
simplicity and spirituality of his nature ; that while 
they considered him as being, and the cause of all 
being, they might be preserved from all idolatry for 
ever. The very name itself is a proof of a divine reve- 
lation ; for it is not possible that such an idea could 
have entered into the mind of man, unless it had been, 
communicated from above. It could not have been 
produced by reasoning, for there were no premises on 
which it could be built, nor any analogies by which it 
could have been formed. We can as easily compre- 
hend eternity as we can being, simply considered in 
and of itself, when nothing of assignable forms, colours, 
or qualities existed, beside its infinite and illimitable 
self. 

Ail time is as nothing before him, because in the 
presence as in the nature of God all is eternity ; there- 



70 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— ATTRIBUTES OF GOD,. 

fore nothing is long, nothing short, before him ; no 
lapse of ages impairs his purposes, nor need he wait to 
find convenience to execute those purposes. -And when 
the longest period of time has passed by, it is but as a 
moment or indivisible point in comparison of eternity. 

Omnipotence. — Every attribute of God is equal. 
Each is infinite, eternal, unoriginated, and without 
bound or limit. Such is the potency of God, it can do 
all things that do not imply absurdity or contradiction ; 
it can do any thing in any way it pleases ; and it can 
do any thing when it pleases ; and it^will do any thing, 
that is necessary to be done, and should be done, when 
it ought to be done, and when the doing; of it will 
most manifest his own glory : and his glory is chiefly 
manifested in promoting the happiness, and saving the 
souls of men. 

What is nature but an instrument in God's hands ? 
What we call " natural effects" are all performed by 
supernatural agency ; for nature, that is, the whole 
system of inanimate things, is as inert as any of the par- 
ticles of matter of the aggregate of which it is composed, 
and can be a cause to no effect but as it is excited by a 
overeign power. This is a doctrine of sound philosophy, 
and should be carefully considered by all, that men may 
see that, without an overruling and universally ener- 
getic providence, no effect whatever can be brought 
about. But beside these general influences of God in 
nature, which are all exhibited by what men call general 
laws, he chooses often to act supernaturally ; that is, 
independently of, or against, these general laws, that we 
may see that there is a God who does not confine him- 
self to one way of working, but with means, without 
means, and even against natural means, accomplishes 
the gracious purposes of his mercy in the behalf of man. 
Where God has promised, let him be implicitly credited, 
because he cannot lie ; and let not hast} r nature inter- 
meddle with his work. 

If there be laws which God ha& imposed on the uni- 
verse, whether they be general or particular, they must 
have their action and efficiency from himself ; and 
whatever be the mode according to which he governs, 
he himself must be the energy by which the govern- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ATTRIBUTES OP GOD. 71 

ment is administered ; and therefore it is not general 
noi particular laws which govern the world, but the 
great, wise, and holy God, governing according to a 
particular mode of his own devising ; and according to 
which he is disposed to work. Properly speaking, he 
governs, not by either general or particular laws, but 
by his own infinite wisdom, adapting his operations 
to all those circumstances and occurrences which are 
ever before him, and ever under his direction and 
control ; " from seeming evil still educing good — and 
better still in infinite progression." As all matter and 
spirit were created by him, and all that he has created 
he upholds, so all matter and spirit are governed by 
him. Every thing, therefore, is under his continual 
superintendence* or governance : and as that govern- 
ance is wise, holy, and good, so whatever is governed 
by it is governed in the best manner, and conducted to 
the best end. 

It is granted that sin has a mighty power ; and that 
Satan, who arms himself with the vile affections of man, 
and rules in the un cleanness of the heart, has a mighty 
power also. But what is power, however great, how- 
ever malevolent, however well circumstanced to accom- 
plish the purposes of its malevolence, when opposed by 
infinite Potency ! All power must originally emanate 
from God. Power, in the above sense, must be lodged 
in, and must be exercised by, some intelligent being. 
Now, all such things, as well as others, must be depend- 
ent on Him who is the Fountain whence they were 
derived. Hence, they can neither exist nor act, but 
as he wills or permits : and hence it is evident he 
can at any time counteract, or suspend, or destroy all 
exertions of all finite beings. Therefore, be the power 
of sin and Satan what it may, this can be no objection 
against the destruction of sin in the heart of man. He 

is ABLE tO do THIS. 

It is the prerogative of God alone to save the human 
soul. Nothing less than unlimited power, exerted under 
the direction and impulse of unbounded mercy, can 
save a sinner. 

The resurrection of the dead is a stupendous work of 
God ; it requires his might in sovereign action : and 
when we consider that all mankind are to be raised and 



72 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ATTRIBUTES OF GOD, 

changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, then 
the momentum, or velocity, with which the power is to 
be applied, must be inconceivably great. All motion is 
in proportion to the quantity of matter in the mover, 
and the velocity with which it is applied. The effect 
here is in proportion to the cause and the energy he 
puts forth in order to produce it. But such is the 
nature of God's power in action, that it is perfectly 
inconceivable to us. 

Every thing is equally easy to that Power which is 
unlimited. A universe can be as easily produced by a 
single act of the divine Will as the smallest elementary 
part of matter. 

I have no doubt that the power or strength of the 
divine nature was the attribute principally contemplated 
by our rude ancestors, and indeed by all the primitive 
inhabitants of the earth. Hence colossal statues, im- 
mense rocks, and massive temples were dedicated to 
this power or strength, which at last the licentious 
imagination of man personified and adored, in a mon- 
strous human form, under the name of Hercules, among 
the Greeks and Romans ; Baal, among the Canaanites ; 
Br amah, among the ancient Hindoos, &c. ; and Tuisco, 
&c, among our Teutonic and Celtic ancestors ; and 
hence every strong man was supposed to be the prin- 
cipal favourite of the Deity, and to be under the 
peculiar direction of this strength or power. It was 
this which gave rise to the histories of Hercules, 
Theseus, Bellerophon, and the giants of different 
countries. 4 

Omnipresence. — Darkness and light, ignorance and 
knowledge, are things that stand in relation to us : God 
sees equally in darkness as in light ; and knows as per- 
fectly, however man is enveloped in ignorance, as if all 
were intellectual brightness. What is to us hidden by 
darkness, or unknown through ignorance, is perfectly 
seen and known by God ; because he is all sight, all 
hearing, all feeling, all soul, all spirit — all in all, and 
infinite in himself. He lends to every thing; receives 
nothing from any thing. Though his essence be not 
impartible, yet his influence is diffusible through time and 
through eternity. Thus God makes himself known, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. 73 

seen, heard, felt ; yet, in the infinity of his essence, 
neither 'angel, nor spirit, nor man, can see him; nor 
can any creature comprehend him, or form any idea of 
the mode of his existence. And yet vain man would be 
wise, and asceitain his foreknowledge, eternal purposes, 
infinite decrees, with all operations of infinite love and 
infinite hatred, and their objects specifically and nomi- 
nally, from all eternity, as if himself had possessed a 
being and powers co-extensive with the Deity ! O ye 
wise fools ! — Jehovah, the Fountain of eternal perfection 
and love, is unlike your creeds, as he is unlike your- 
selves, forgers of doctrines to prove that the Source of 
infinite benevolence is a streamlet of capricious love to 
thousands, while he is an overflowing, eternal, and irre 
sistible tide of hatred to millions of millions, both of 
angels and men ! The antiproof of such doctrine is 
this : — He bears with such blasphemies, and does not 
consume their abettors. " But nobody holds these doc- 
trines." Then I have written against nobody ; and 
have only to add the prayer, May no such doctrines 
ever disgrace the page of history ; or farther dishonour, 
as they have done, the annals of the church ! 

It is strange that the doctrine of real, absolute, and 
external space, should have induced some philosophers 
to conclude it was a part or attribute of God, or that 
God himself was space ; inasmuch as incommunicable 
attributes of the Deity appeared to agree to this ; such 
as infinity, immutability, indivisibility, and incorporeity ; 
it being also uncreated, impassive, without beginning or 
ending : — not considering that all these negative pro- 
perties belong to nothing. For nothing has no limits ; 
cannot be moved, nor changed, nor divided : nor is it 
created, nor can it be destroyed. 

It is, therefore, his presence that constitutes this 
space, without which it could not exist : and since every 
particle of space is always, and, in every indivisible 
moment, everywhere, the Creator and Lord of all things 
cannot be never or nowhere. 

He is omnipresent, not only virtually, but substan- 
tially ; for power without substance cannot exist. 

All things are contained and move in or by him, but 
without any mutual passion : he suffers nothing from 

4 



74 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. 

the motions of bodies ; nor do they undergo any resist 
ance from his omnipresence. 

Omniscience. — God is infinitely wise. He knows 
himself, and what he has formed, and what he can do. 
He well knew how to construct his word so as to suit it 
to the state of all hearts ; and he has given it that infi- 
nite fulness of meaning so as to suit it to all cases. 
And so infinite is he in his knowledge, and so omni- 
present is he, that the whole creation is constantly ex- 
posed to his view ; nor is there a creature of the affec- 
tions, mind, or imagination, that is not constantly under 
his eye. He marks every rising thought, every bud- 
ding desire. 

" The manifold wisdom of God ;'■' that multifarious 
and greatly diversified wisdom of God ; laying great 
and infinite plans, and accomplishing them by endless 
means, through the whole lapse of ages ; making every 
occurrence subservient to the purposes of his infinite 
mercy and goodness. God's gracious design to save a 
lost world by Jesus Christ could not be defeated by 
any cunning, skill, or malice of men or devils. What- 
ever hinderances are thrown in the way his wisdom and 
power can remove ; and his infinite wisdom can never 
want ways or means to effect its gracious designs. 

Benevolence. — Entertain just notions of God ; of 
his nature, power, will, justice, goodness, and truth. 
Do not conceive of him as being actuated by such pas- 
sions as men ; separate him in your hearts from every 
thing earthly, human, fickle, rigidly severe, or capri- 
ciously merciful. Consider that he can neither be like 
man, feel like man, nor act like man. Ascribe no 
human passions to him ; for this would desecrate, not 
sanctify him. Do not confine him in your conceptions 
to place, space, vacuity, heaven, or earth ; endeavour 
to think worthily of the immensity and eternity of his 
nature, of his omniscience, omnipresence, and omnipo- 
tence. Avoid the error of the heathens, who bound 
even their Dii Major cs, their greatest gods, by fate, as 
many well meaning Christians do the true God by de- 
crees. Conceive of him as infinitely free to act or not 
act, as he pleases. Consider the goodness of his nature ; 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. 75 

for goodness, in every possible state of perfection and 
infinitude, belongs to him. Ascribe no malevolence to 
him ; nor any work, purpose, or decree that implies it : 
this is not only a human passion, but a passion of fallen 
man. Do not suppose that he can do evil, or that he 
can destroy when he might save ; that he ever did or 
ever can hate any of those whom he made in his own 
image, and in his own likeness, so as by a positive de- 
cree to doom them, unborn, to everlasting perdition ; 
or, what is of the same import, pass them by without 
affording them the means of salvation, and consequently 
rendering it impossible for them to be saved. Thus 
endeavour to conceive of him ; and by so doing you 
separate him from all that is imperfect, human, evil, 
capricious, changeable, and unkind. Ever remember 
that he has wisdom without error, power without limits, 
truth without falsity, love without hatred, holiness with- 
out evil, and justice without rigour or severity on the 
one hand, or capricious tenderness on the other : in a 
word, that he neither can be, say, purpose, or do any 
thing that is not infinitely just, holy, wise, true, and 
gracious ; that he hates nothing that he has made ; and 
has so loved the world, the whole human race, as to 
give his only begotten Son to die for them, that they 
might not perish, but have everlasting life. The system 
of humanizing God, and making him, by our unjust con- 
ceptions of him, to act as ourselves would in certain 
circumstances, has been the bane both of religion and 
piety ; and on this ground infidels have laughed us to 
scorn. It is high time that we should no longer " know 
God after the flesh ;" for even if we have known Jesus 
Christ after the flesh, we are to know him so no more. 
" God is love :" and in this an infinity of breadth, 
length, depth, and height is included ; or rather all 
breadth, length, depth, and height are lost in this im- 
mensity. It comprehends all that is above, all that is 
below, all that is present, all that is past, and all that is 
to come. In reference to human beings, the love of 
God in its breadth is a girdle that encompasses the 
globe, or a mantle in which it is wrapped up. Its 
length reaches from the eternal purpose of the mission 
of Christ, to the eternity of blessedness which is to be 
enjoyed by the pure in heart in his ineffable glories. 



76 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. 

Its depth reaches to the lowest-fallen of the sons of 
Adam, and to the deepest depravity of the human heart ; 
and its height to the infinite dignities of the throne of 
Christ. 

Whatever is good is from God ; whatever is evil is 
from man himself. As from the sun, which is the father 
or fountain of light, all light comes ; so from God, who 
is the infinite Fountain, Father, and Source of good, all 
good comes. And whatever can be called good, or pure, 
or light, or excellence of any kind, must necessarily 
spring from him, as he is the only source of all goodness 
and perfection. 

God dispenses his benefits when, where, and to whom 
he pleases. No person can complain of his conduct in 
these respects, because no person deserves any good 
from his hand. God never punishes any but those who 
deserve it ; but he blesses incessantly those who deserve 
it not. The reason is evident : justice depends on cer- 
tain rules ; but beneficence is free. Beneficence can 
bless both the good and the evil ; justice can punish the 
latter only. Those who do not make this distinction 
must have a very confused notion of the conduct of 
divine Providence among men. 

Philanthropy is a character which God gives to him- 
self: while human nature exists, this must be a character 
of the divine nature. God loves man : he delighted in 
the idea when formed in his own infinite mind ; he 
formed man according to that idea, and rejoiced in the 
work of his hands. When man fell, the same love in- 
duced him to devise his redemption, and God the Saviour 
flows from God the Philanthropist. 

It cannot appear strange that God should will all men 
to be saved ; for this necessarily follows from his willing 
the salvation of any. For that nature has not been 
divided, and every portion of it falls equally under the 
merciful regards of the Father of the spirits of all flesh. 

As God is " not willing that any should perish," and 
as he is " willing that all should come to repentance," 
consequently he has never devised nor decreed the 
damnation of any man, nor has he rendered it impossible 
for any soul to be saved, either by necessitating him to 
do evil, that he might die for it, or refusing him the 
means of recovery, without which he could not be saved. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. 77 

The will of God is infinitely good, wise, and holy. 
To have it fulfilled in and among men, is to have infinite 
goodness, wisdom, and holiness diffused throughout the 
universe ; and earth made the counterpart of heaven. 

Will in God is that which he chooses or determines 
to do or leave undone. Now, as an excellent, perfect, 
and wise Being cannot will, or wish, or desire anything 
that is not good, wise, useful, and proper to be done, so 
the will of God is ever influenced by his goodness ; 
therefore he can never make a bad or improper choice, 
nor determine any thing that is not good in itself; and 
good or proper to all those who may be the objects of 
its operation. As will implies desire, and God's nature 
is good, so his will or desire must be good, — good in 
itself, and good to all those whom it affects : hence he 
must be good in all his actions, and good to all his crea- 
tures, in all his determinations and providential dispensa- 
tions toward them. 

" God is love ;" an infinite Fountain of benevolence 
and beneficence to every human being. He hates no- 
thing that he has made. He cannot hate, because he is 
love. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the 
good, and sends his rain on the just and the unjust. He 
has made no human being for perdition, nor ever ren- 
dered it impossible, by any necessitating decree, for any 
fallen soul to find mercy. He has given the fullest 
proof of his love to the whole human race by the incarna- 
tion of his Son, who tasted death for every man. How 
can a decree of absolute, unconditional reprobation of 
the greater part, or any part of the human race, stand 
in the presence of such a text as this 1 It has been well 
observed that, although God is holy, just, righteous, &c, 
he is never called Holiness, Justice, &c, in the abstract, 
as he is here called Love. This seems to be the essence 
of the divine nature, and all other attributes to be only 
modifications of this. 

It has ever been a matter of astonishment to me that 
any soul of man, partaking at all of the divine nature, 
or knowing any thing of the ineffable love and goodness 
of God, should have ever indulged the sentiment, or 
have laboured to prove, that the God whose name is 
Mercy, and whose nature is Love, and " who hateth no- 
thing that he hath made," should, notwithstanding, have 



78 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ATTRIBUTES Op. JfOD. 

a sovereign, irrespective, eternal love to a few of the 
fallen human race ; together with a sovereign, irrevoca- 
ble, and eternal hatred to the great mass of mankind ; 
according to which the salvation of the former, and the 
perdition of the latter, have been, from all eternity, 
absolutely and irrevocably fixed, preordained, and de- 
creed ! 

Justice. — All the divine perfections are in perfect 
unity and harmony among themselves : God never acts 
from one of his attributes exclusively, but in the infinite 
unity of all his attributes. He never acts from benevo- 
lence to the exclusion of justice ; nor from justice to the 
exclusion of mercy. Though the effect of his opera- 
tions may appear to us to be in one case the offspring of 
power alone; in another, of justice alone ; in a third, 
of mercy alone ; yet, in respect to the divine nature 
itself, all these effects are the joint produce of all his 
perfections, neither of which is exerted more or less 
than another. 

God's justice can have no demands but what are per- 
fectly equitable : his justice is infinite righteousness, 
as totally distant from rigour, on the one hand, as from 
laxity or partiality on the other. Should it be said that 
" the wretched state of the sinner pleads aloud in the 
ear of God's mercy, and this is a sufficient reason why 
his mercy should be exercised ;" I answer, that his 
wicked state calls as loudly in the ears of God's justice, 
that it might be exclusively exercised ; and thus the 
hope from mercy is cut off. Besides, to make the cul- 
prit's misery, which is the effect of his sin, the reason 
why God should show him mercy, is to make sin and its 
fruits the reason why God should thus act. And thus, 
that which is in eternal hostility to the nature and go- 
vernment of God must be the motive why he should, in a 
most strange and contradictory way, exercise his bene 
volence to the total exclusion of his justice, righteous 
ness, and truth. 

All those who have read the Scriptures with care and 
attention know well that God is frequently represented 
in them as doing Avjiat he only permits to be done. So, 
because man has grieved his Spirit, and resisted his 
grace, he withdraws that Spirit and grace from him, and 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. *9 

thus he becomes bold and presumptuous in sin. Pha- 
raoh made his own heart stubborn against God, Exodus 
ix, 34, and God gave him up to judicial blindness, so 
that he rushed on stubbornly to his own destruction. 
But let it be observed that there is nothing spoken here 
of the eternal state of the Egyptian king ; nor does any- 
thing in the whole of the account authorize us to believe 
that God hardened his heart against the influence of his 
own grace, that he might occasion him so to sin that his 
justice might consign him to hell. This would be such 
an act of flagrant injustice as we could scarcely attribute 
to the worst of men. He who leads another into an 
offence that he may have a fairer pretence to punish him 
for it, or brings him into such circumstances that he 
cannot avoid committing a capital crime, and then hangs 
him for it, is surely the most execrable of mortals. 
What then should w r e make of the God of justice and 
mercy, should we attribute to him a decree, the date of 
which is lost in eternity, by which he has determined to 
cut off from the possibility of salvation millions of mil- 
lions of unborn souls, and leave them under a necessity 
of sinning, by actually hardening their hearts against the 
influences of his own grace and Spirit, that he may, on 
the pretence of justice, assign them to endless perdition ? 
Whatever may be pretended on behalf of such unqualified 
opinions, it must be evident to all who are not deeply 
prejudiced, that neither the justice nor sovereignty of 
God can be magnified by them. 

Even justice itself, on the ground of its holy and eter- 
nal nature, gives salvation to the vilest who take refuge 
in Christ's atonement ; for justice has nothing to grant, 
or Heaven to give, which the blood of the Son of God 
has not merited. 

Holiness. — " God is light ;" the source of wisdom, 
knowledge, holiness, and happiness ; " and in him is no 
darkness at all ;" no ignorance, no imperfection, no sin- 
fulness, no misery. And from him wisdom, knowledge, 
holiness, and happiness are received by every believing 
soul. This is the grand message of the gospel, the great 
principle on which the happiness of man depends. 
Light implies every essential excellence, especially wis- 
dom, holiness, and happiness. Darkness implies all 



80 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. 

imperfection, and principally ignorance, sinfulness, and 
misery. Light is the purest, the most subtile, the most 
useful, and the most diffusive of all God's creatures ; 
it is, therefore, a very proper emblem of the purity, per- 
fection, and goodness of the divine nature. God is to 
human souls what light is to the world. Without the 
latter, it would be dismal and uncomfortable, and terror 
and death would universally prevail ; and without an 
indwelling God, what is religion ? Without his all- 
penetrating and diffusive light, what is the soul of man? 
Religion would be an empty science, a dead letter, a 
system unauthoritated and uninfluencing ; and the soul 
a trackless wilderness, a howling waste, full of evil, of 
terror and dismay, and ever racked with realizing anti- 
cipations of future, successive, permanent, substantial, 
and endless misery. 

Nothing can humble a pious mind so much as scrip- 
tural apprehensions of the majesty of God. It is easy to 
contemplate his goodness, loving kindness, and mercy : 
in all these we have an interest, and from them we 
expect the greatest good. But to consider his holi- 
ness and justice, the infinite righteousness of his nature, 
under the conviction that we have sinned, and broken 
the laws prescribed by his sovereign Majesty, and feel 
ourselves brought as into the presence of his judgment 
seat : who can bear the thought ? If cherubim and 
seraphim veil their faces before his throne, and the 
holiest soul cries out, — 

" I loathe myself when God I see, 
And into nothing fall ;" 

what must a sinner feel whose conscience is not yet 
purged from dead works, and who feels the wrath of 
God abiding on him ? And how, without such a Media- 
tor and Sacrifice as Jesus Christ is, can any human 
spirit come into the presence of its Judge ? Those who 
can approach him without terror know little of his 
justice, and nothing of their sins. When we approach 
him in prayer, or in any ordinance, should we not feel 
more reverence than we generally do ? 

Though all earth and hell should join together to 
hinder the accomplishment of the great designs of the 
Most High, yet it shall all be in vain — even the sense 
of a single letter shall not be lost. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE TRINITY. 81 

The words of God, which point out his designs, are 
as unchangeable as his nature itself. 



IV.— THE TRINITY. 

In Genesis i, 1, the original word Elohim, " God," is 
certainly the plural form of El, or Eloah, and has long 
been supposed, by the most eminently learned and pious 
men, to imply a plurality of persons in the divine nature. 
As this plurality appears in so many parts of the sacred 
writings to be confined to three persons, hence the 
doctrine of the Trinity, which has formed a part of the 
creed of all those who have been deemed sound in the 
faith, from the earliest ages of Christianity. Nor are 
the Christians singular in receiving this doctrine, and in 
deriving it from the first words of divine revelation. 
An eminent Jewish rabbin, Simeon ben Joachi, has these 
remarkable words : " Come and see the mystery of the 
word Elohim ; there are three degrees, and each degree 
by itself alone, and yet, notwithstanding, they are all one, 
and joined together in one, and are not divided from each 
other." In the ever blessed Trinity, from the infinite 
and indivisible unity of the persons, there can be but one 
will, one purpose, and one infinite and uncontrollable 
energy. 

In God there are found three persons, not separately 
existing, but in one infinite unity ; who are termed 
Father, Son, and Spirit ; or God the Father, God the 
Son, and God the Holy Ghost, all existing in the one 
infinite and eternal Godhead ; neither being before or 
after the other, none being greater or less than the 
other. These three divine persons are frequently termed 
among Christians the Trinity. 

This passage, Matt, iii, 16, 17, affords no mean proof 
of the doctrine of the Trinity. That three distinct per- 
sons are here represented, there can be no dispute: 
1. The person of Jesus Christ baptized by John in 
Jordan. 2. The person of the Holy Ghost in a bodily 
shape, like a dove. 3. The person of the Father ; a 
voice came out of heaven, saying, " This is my beloved 
Son," <fcc. The voice is here represented as proceed- 
ing from a different place to that in which the persons of 
the Son and the Holy Spirit were manifested; and 

4=* 



82 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE TRINITV. 

merely, I think, more forcibly to mark this divine 
personality. 

The apostles were commissioned to teach and prose- 
lyte all the nations, and baptize them in the name of the 
holy Trinity, Matt, xxviii, 19. Baptism, properly 
speaking, whether administered by dipping or sprink- 
ling, signifies a full and eternal consecration of the 
person to the service and honour of that Being in whose 
name it is administered ; but this consecration can never 
be made to a creature ; therefore the Father, and the 
Son, and the Holy Spirit are not creatures. Again : 
baptism is not made in the name of a quality or attribute 
of the divine nature ; therefore the Father, and the 
Son, and the Holy Spirit are not qualities or attributes 
of the divine nature. The orthodox, as they are termed, 
have generally considered this text a decisive proof of 
the doctrine of the holy Trinity : and what else can 
they draw from it ? Is it possible for words to convey 
a plainer sense than these do ? And do they not direct 
every reader to consider the Father, the Son, and the 
Holy Spirit, as three distinct persons ? " But this I can 
never believe." I cannot help that. You shall not be 
persecuted by me for differing from my opinion. I can- 
not go over to you ; I must abide by what I believe to 
be the meaning of the Scriptures. 

Eph. ii, 18 : " For through him," Christ Jesus, " we 
both," Jews and Gentiles, " have access by one Spirit," 
through the influence of the Holy Ghost, " unto the 
Father," God Almighty. This text is a plain proof of 
the holy Trinity. Jews and Gentiles are to be presented 
to God the Father ; and the Spirit of God works in their 
hearts, and prepares them for this presentation : and 
Jesus Christ himself introduces them. No one can have 
access to God but by Jesus Christ, and he introduces 
none but such as receive his Holy Spirit. 

Even the doctrine of the eternal Trinity in unity 
maybe collected from numberless appearances in nature. 
A consideration of the herb trefoil is said to have been 
the means of fully convincing the learned Erasmus of 
the truth of the assertion, " These three are one ;" and 
yet three distinct. He saw the same root, the same 
fibres, the same pulpy substance, the same membraneous 
covering, the same colour, the same taste, the same 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 83 

smell, in every part ; and yet the three leaves distinct ; 
but each and all a continuation of the stem, and pro- 
ceeding from the same root. Such a fact as this may 
at least illustrate thedoctrine. An intelligent shepherd, 
whom he met upon the mountains, is said to have exhi- 
bited the herb and the illustration, while discoursing 
on certain difficulties in the Christian faith. When a 
child I heard a learned man relate this fact. 

May God the Father adopt me fully for his child ! 
May God the Son dwell in my heart by faith ! May God 
the Holy Spirit purge my conscience from dead works, 
and purify my soul from all unrighteousness ! May 
the holy, blessed, and glorious Trinity take me and 
mine, and seal us for his own in time and in eternity ! 

O thou incomprehensible Jehovah, thou eternal Word, 
thou ever during and all-pervading Spirit ; — Father ! 
Son ! and Holy Ghost ! in the plenitude of thy eternal 
Godhead, in thy light, I, in a measure see thee ; and in 
thy condescending nearness to my nature I can love 
thee, for thou hast loved me. In thy strength may I 
begin, continue, and end every design and every work, 
so as to glorify thee by showing how much thou lovest 
man, and how much man may be ennobled and beatified 
by loving thee ! Here am I fixed, here am I lost, and 
here I find my God, and here I find myself ! 

Y.— MAN. 

The Creation of Man. — Let us figure to ourselves, 
for we may innocently do it, the state of the divine na- 
ture previously to the formation of the human being. 
Infinitely happy, because infinitely perfect and self-suffi- 
cient, the supreme Being could feel no wants ; — to him 
nothing was wanting, nothing needful. As the " good 
man is satisfied from himself," from the contemplation 
of his conscious rectitude ; so, comparing infinitely 
great with small things, the divine mind was supremely 
satisfied with the possession and contemplation of its 
own unlimited excellences. From unmixed, unsullied 
goodness sprang all the endlessly varied attributes, per- 
fections, and excellences of the divine nature ; or rather, 
in this principle all are founded, and of this each is an 
especial modification. Benevolence is, however, an 



84 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 

affection inseparable from goodness. God, the All-suffi- 
cient, knew that he could, in a certain way, communi- 
cate influences from his own perfections t but the being 
must resemble himself to whom the communication 
could be made. His benevolence, therefore, to commu- 
nicate and diffuse his own infinite happiness, we may 
naturally suppose, led him to form the purpose of cre- 
ating intelligent beings, to whom such communication 
could be made. He, therefore, in the exuberance of his 
eternal goodness, projected the creation of man, whom 
he formed in his own image, that he might be capable 
of those communications. Here, then, was a motive 
worthy of eternal goodness, the desire to communicate 
its own blessedness ; and here was an object worthy of 
the divine wisdom and power, the making an intelligent 
creature a transcript of his own eternity, Psalm viii, 5, 
just less than God ; and endowing him with powers and 
faculties of the most extraordinary and comprehensive 
nature. 

I do not found these observations on the supposition 
of certain excellences possessed by man previously to 
his fall : I found them on what he is now. I found them 
on his vast and comprehensive understanding ; on his 
astonishing powers of ratiocination ; on the extent and 
endless variety of his imagination or inventive faculty : 
and I see the proof and exercise of these in his inven- 
tion of arts and sciences. Though fallen from God, 
naturally degraded and depraved, he has not lost his 
natural powers ; he is yet capable of the most exalted 
degrees of knowledge in all natural things ; and his 
" knowledge is power." 

Let us take a cursory view of what he has done, and 
of what he is capable : he has numbered the stars of 
heaven ; he has demonstrated the planetary revolutions 
and the laws by which they are governed ; he has ac- 
counted for every apparent anomaly in the various 
affections of the heavenly bodies, he has measured their 
distances, determined their solid contents, and weighed 
the sun ! 

His researches into the three kingdoms of nature, the 
animal, vegetable, and mineral, are, for their variety, 
correctness, and importance, of the highest considera- 
tion. The laws of matter, of organized and unorganized 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 85 

beings, and those chymical principles by which all the 
operations of nature are conducted, have been investi- 
gated by him with the utmost success. He has shown 
the father of the rain, and who has begotten the drops 
of dew ; he has accounted for the formation of the snow, 
the hailstones, and the ice ; and demonstrated the laws 
by which the tempest and tornado are governed ; he 
has taken the thunder from the clouds ; and he plays 
with the lightnings of heaven ! 

He has invented those grand subsidiaries of life, the 
lever, the screw, the wedge, the inclined plane, and the 
pulley : and by those means multiplied his power be- 
yond conception ; he has invented the telescope, and by 
this instrument has brought the hosts of heaven almost 
into contact with the earth. By his engines he has ac- 
quired a sort of omnipotency over inert matter; and 
produced effects which, to the uninstructed mind, pre- 
sent all the appearance of supernatural agency. By his 
mental energy he has sprung up into illimitable space ; 
and has seen and described those worlds which an infi- 
nite skill has planned, and an infinite benevolence sus- 
tains. He has proceeded to all describable and assign- 
able limits, and has conceived the most astonishing 
relations and affections of space, place, and vacuity; and 
yet, at all those limits, he has felt himself unlimited ; 
and still can imagine the possibility of worlds and be- 
ings, natural and intellectual, in endless variety, beyond 
the whole. Here is a most extraordinary power ; de- 
scribe all known or conjectured beings, and he can 
imagine more ; point out all the good that even God has 
promised, and he can desire still greater enjoyments ! 

Of no creature but man is it said, that it was made in 
the image and likeness of God. Neither the thrones, 
dominions, principalities, powers, cherubim, seraphim, 
archangels nor angels, have shared this honour. It is 
possible that only one order of created beings could be 
thus formed. 

" God made man in his own image, and in his own 
likeness." Now this must have been what is termed 
*' the moral image of God ;" for it cannot be expounded 
of any formal image or likeness of that infinite Spirit : 
and from St. Paul, Col. iii, 10, and Eph. iv, 24, we 
learn that this image consisted in knowledge, righteous- 



86 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 

ness, and true holiness. 1. Man had an intellect which 
God filled with his own wisdom, therefore he was wise; 
and he had from that wisdom a knowledge of himself, 
of God, and of his works, far beyond what we can now 
comprehend. His giving names to the different crea- 
tures was one proof of the extent of that knowledge, 
and of its special power to take in particular, as well as 
general views. He gave each creature its name ; and, 
as it appears, this name was expressive of some essen- 
tial characteristic or quality of the creature to which it 
was applied. The only thing to which this knowledge 
did not apply, was the knowledge of good and evil ; of 
good, as contradistinguished from evil ; and of evil, as 
implying the opposite of good. This distinction could 
not have been known but by experience ; and such an 
experience could not comport with the perfection of his 
state, as it would be the consequence of his transgres- 
sion of his Maker's command. When he ate of the for- 
bidden tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he then 
received a knowledge which God never designed him to 
have. He knew good lost, and evil got ; but, pre- 
viously, his knowledge was pure, holy, good, clear, and 
perfective of his being. 2. Righteousness. This word 
among our ancestors signified the same as "right-wise- 
ness," thorough wisdom ; that which gave a man to 
distinguish between right and wrong : this is the wisdom 
which comes from above ; and that man is the right- 
wise man who acts by its dictates. Right is straight ; 
and wrong is crooked. Hence the righteous man is 
one who goes straight on or forward ; acts and walks by 
line and rule : and the unrighteous is he who walks in 
crooked paths, does what is wrong, and is never guided 
by true wisdom. This power, and, with it, the pro- 
pensity to act aright, was one of the characteristics of 
the human soul as it came out of the hand of God. It 
was created in knowledge and righteousness. 3. Holi- 
ness, piety toward God ; heart worship, pure from hy- 
pocrisy and superstition ; steady, uniform piety ; wor- 
shipping God in spirit and in truth. This was another 
constituent of the image of God in which man was made. 
And he walked in truth. It was the holiness of truth, 
unsophisticated piety. Every feeling was a feeling of 
true piety ; and every act of worship flowed from that 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN, 8" 

feeling. This was a state of perfection. He knew 
every thing that belonged to his being and his duty per- 
fectly ; he acted perfectly ; he walked in the right way ; 
he went straight forward; he ever did what was lawful 
and right in the sight of God his Maker ; he reverenced 
him in the highest degree ; offered the purest worship 
from a pure and holy heart ; and all was according to 
truth ; there were no semblances, no outsides of piety ; 
all was sterling, all substantial ; all such as God could 
require ; and with every act and feeling was the Lord 
pleased. 

It is not enough to say that God made all his works 
to show forth his glory. He had no need to contem- 
plate his own works to be satisfied with the exertion of 
his power and wisdom. This would suppose that his 
gratification depended on his own work. He needs not 
the exertions of his eternal power and Godhead to minis- 
ter to, or augment his happiness ; for, although he can 
not but be pleased with every work of his hand, as all that 
he has created is very good, yet it was not for this end, 
but it was in reference to a great design, that they were 
created and still subsist. This design was the formation 
and eternal beatification of intelligent beings. He there- 
fore made man in his own image and in his own likeness : 
he made him immortal, rational, and holy. He en- 
dowed him with intellectual powers of the most asto- 
nishing compass. He made him capable of knowing the 
Author of his being in the glory of his perfections, and 
of deriving unutterable happiness from this knowledge. 
But he made him immortal, a transcript of his own eter- 
nity ; he cannot wholly die — cannot be annihilated, but 
must exist, and exist intellectually, to all eternity. He 
has made him holy, that he might be for ever capable 
of union with Him who is the Source and Fountain of 
all purity ; and his eternal happiness is to consist in his 
eternal union with this Being ; seeing him as he is, know- 
ing him in his own light;, and endlessly receiving addi- 
tional degrees of knowledge and happiness out of his 
fulness. 

The soul of man was made in the image and likeness 
of God. Now, as the divine Being is infinite, he is 
neither limited by parts, nor definable by passions; 
therefore he can have no corporeal image after which he 



88 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 

made the body of man. The image and likeness must 
necessarily be intellectual ; his mind, his soul, must 
have been formed after the nature and perfections of his 
God. The human mind is still endowed with most 
extraordinary capacities ; it was more so when issuing 
out of the hands of its Creator. God was now pro- 
ducing spirit, and a spirit too formed after the perfec- 
tions of his own nature. God is the Fountain whence 
this spirit issued : hence the stream must resemble the 
spring which produced it. God is holy, just, wise, 
good, and perfect ; so must the soul be that sprang from 
him ; there could be in it nothing impure, unjust, igno- 
rant, evil, low, base, mean, or vile. It was created after 
the image of God ; and that image, St. Paul tells us, 
consisted in righteousness, true holiness, and know- 
ledge. Hence man was wise in his mind, holy in his 
heart, and righteous in his actions. Were even the 
word of God silent on this subject, we could not infer 
less from the lights held out to us by reason and com- 
mon sense. The text, Gen. i, 26, tells us he was the 
work of Elohim, the divine plurality, marked here more 
distinctly by the plural pronouns, us and our ; and, to 
show that he was the masterpiece of God's creation, all 
the persons in the Godhead are represented as united in 
counsel and effort to produce this astonishing creature. 

Both his body and soul are adapted with astonishing 
wisdom to their residence and occupations ; and also the 
place of their residence, as well as the surrounding 
objects, in their diversity, colour, and mutual relations, 
to the mind and body of this lord of the creation. The 
contrivance, arrangement, action, and reaction of the 
different parts of the body show the admirable skill of 
the wondrous Creator ; while the various powers and 
faculties of the mind, acting on and by the different 
organs of this body, proclaim the soul's divine origin, 
and demonstrate that he who was made in the image 
and likeness of God was a transcript of his own excel- 
lence, destined to know, love, and dwell with his Maker 
throughout eternity. 

That God made man conditionally immortal cannot, 
I think, be reasonably doubted. Though formed out of 
the dust of the earth, his Maker breathed into his 
nostrils the breath of life, and he became a living soul ; 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 89 

and as there was then nothing violent, nothing out of 
its place, no agent too weak or too slow on the one 
hand, or too powerful or too active on the other ; so all 
the operations of nature were only performed in time, 
in quantity, and in power, according to the exigencies 
of the ends to be accomplished. So that in number, 
weight, and measure, every thing existed and acted 
according to the unerring wisdom and skill of the omni- 
potent Creator. There could, therefore, be no corrup- 
tion or decay ; no disorderly induration, nor preter- 
natural solution or solubility of any portions of matter ; 
no disorders in the earth ; nothing noxious or unhealthy 
in the atmosphere. The vast mass was all perfect: the 
parts of which it was composed equally so. As he 
created, so he upheld all things by the word of his 
power : and as he created all things, so by him did all 
things consist ; and among these man. Every solid had 
its due consistency ; every fluid its proper channel ; 
some for support and strength, others for activity and 
energy ; and the various fluids to conduct to every part 
the necessary supplies, and to furnish those spirits by 
whose natural and regular agency life, under God, is 
sustained. 

It would be absurd to suppose that God formed any 
intelligent beings without a law or rule of life, when 
we know that he formed them to show forth his glory : 
which they can do no otherwise than by exhibiting, in 
actions, those virtues derived from the perfections of 
God. And those actions must be founded on some pre- 
scription or rule. What our blessed Lord calls the 
" first and greatest commandment," must be the law in 
question ; namely, " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God 
with all thy heart, with all thy soul, with all thy mind, 
and with all thy strength." The very nature of man's 
creation must show that this was the law or rule of life 
by which he was called to act. This law is suited to 
the nature of an intelligent being ; and as man was made 
in the image and likeness of God, this law was suitable 
to his nature ; and the principles of it must have been 
impressed on that nature. 

God gave man a law ; the spirit of which was, " Thou 
shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul," 
&c. This was plain, simple, holy, just, and good. 1. It 



90 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 

was plain, — so that it could not be mistaken. 2. Simple, — 
so that it could not perplex nor confound by distinctions 
and subtleties. 3. Holy,— totally free either from sin 
or imperfection. 4. Just, — as requiring no obedience 
but what the creature owed to its Creator. And, 5. 
Good, — as it led to the continual perfection of the crea- 
ture, and secured its increasing felicity. 

The first positive precept God gave to man was given 
as a test of obedience, and a proof of his being in a de 
pendent, probationary state. It was necessary that, 
while constituted lord of this lower world, he should 
know that he was only God's vicegerent, and must be 
accountable to him for the use of his mental and cor- 
poreal powers, and for the use he made of the different 
creatures put under his care. The man from whose 
mind the strong impression of this dependence and 
responsibility is erased, necessarily loses sight of his 
origin and end, and is capable of any species of wicked- 
ness. As God is sovereign, he has a right to give to 
his creatures what commands he thinks proper. An 
intelligent creature without a law to regulate his con- 
duct is an absurdity ; this would destroy at once the 
idea of his dependence and accountableness. Man 
must ever feel God as his sovereign, and act under his 
authority, which he cannot do unless he have a rule of 
conduct. This rule God gives ; and it is no matter 
of what kind it is, as long as obedience to it is not be- 
yond the powers of the creature who is to obey. God 
says, " There is a certain fruit-bearing tree ; thou shalt 
not eat of its fruit ; but of all the other fruits, and they 
are all that are necessary for thee, thou mayest freely? 
liberally eat." Had he not an absolute right to say so: 
And was not man bound to obey ? 

Let it be observed that such a law to such a being 
cannot admit of deviations ; it requires a full, perfect, 
and universal obedience ; and an obedience performed 
with all the powers and energies of body and soul. 

But does it follow that man, in this pure and perfect 
state, fulfilling at all times the sublime duty required by 
this law, could merit an eternal glory by his obedience? 
No. For he is the creature of God ; his powers belong 
to his Maker: he owes him all the services he can per- 
form; and, when he has acted up to the utmost limits 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 91 

of his exalted nature, in obedience to this most pure 
and holy law, it will appear that he can make no demand 
on divine justice for remuneration ; he is, as it respects 
God, an "unprofitable servant;" he has only done his 
duty, and he has nothing to claim. In these circum- 
stances was not only man in paradise, but also every 
angel and archangel of God. Throughout eternity, no 
created being, however pure, holy, submissive, and 
obedient, can have any demand on its Creator. From 
him its being was originally derived, and by him that 
being is sustained ; to him, therefore, by right it be- 
longs ; and whatever he has made it capable of he has a 
right to demand. As well might the cause be supposed 
to be a debtor to the effect produced by it, as the Crea- 
tor, in any circumstances, to be a debtor to the creature. 

The Fall of Man. — Let us review the whole of this 
melancholy business, the fall and its effects. 

1. From the New Testament we learn that Satan 
associated himself with the creature which we term the 
serpent, and the original, the nachash, in order to 
seduce and ruin mankind; 2 Cor. xi, 3; Rev. xii, 9; 
xx, 2. 2. That this creature was the most suitable to 
his purpose, as being the most subtle, the most intelli- 
gent and cunning of all beasts of the field, endued with 
the gift of speech and reason, and consequently one in 
which he could best conceal himself. 3. As he knew 
that while they depended on God they could not be 
ruined, he therefore endeavoured to seduce them from 
this dependence. 4. He does this by working on that 
propensity of the mind to desire an increase of know- 
ledge with which God, for the most gracious purposes, 
had endued it. 5. In order to succeed, he insinuates 
that God through motives of envy had given the pro- 
hibition : " God doth know that in the day you eat of 
it ye shall be like himself," &c. 6. As their present 
state of blessedness must be inexpressibly dear to them, 
he endeavours to persuade them that they could not fall 
from this state : " Ye shall not surely die :" — " Ye shall 
not only retain your present blessedness, but it shall be 
greatly increased ;" a temptation by which he has ever 
since fatally succeeded in the ruin of multitudes of 
souls, whom he persuaded that, being once right, they 



92 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 

could never finally go wrong. 7. As he has kept the 
unlawfulness of the means proposed out of sight, per- 
suaded them that they could not fall from their stead- 
fastness, assured them that they should resemble God 
himself, and consequently be self-sufficient, and totally 
independent of him ; they listened, and, fixing their 
eye only on the promised good, neglected the positive 
command, and, determining to become wise and inde- 
pendent at all events, " they took of the fruit, and did 
eat." 

Let us now examine the effects. 

1. " Their eyes were opened, and they saw they were 
naked." They saw what they never saw before, — that 
they were stripped of their excellence ; that they had 
lost their innocence ; and that they had fallen into a 
state of indigence and danger. 2. Though their eyes 
were opened to see their nakedness, yet their mind was 
clouded, and their judgment confused. They seem to 
have lost all just notions of honour and dishonour, of 
what was shameful and what was praiseworthy. It 
was dishonourable and shameful to break the command- 
ment of God ; but it was neither to go naked when 
clothing was not necessary. 3. They seem, in a mo- 
ment, not only to have lost sound judgment, but also 
reflection ; a short time before Adam was so wise that 
he could name all the creatures brought before him 
according to their respective natures and qualities ; 
now he does not know the first principle concerning the 
divine nature, — that it knows all things, and that it is 
omnipresent ; therefore he endeavours to hide himself 
among the trees from the eye of the all-seeing God ! 
How astonishing is this ! When the creatures were 
brought to him he could name them because he could 
discern their respective natures and properties ; when 
Eve was brought to him he could immediately tell what 
she was, who she was, and for what end made, though 
he was in a deep sleep when God formed her ; and this 
seems to be particularly noted, merely to show the 
depth of his wisdom, and the perfection of his discern- 
ment. But, alas ! how are the mighty fallen ! Com- 
pare his present with his past state, his state before the 
transgression with his state after it ; and say, Is this 
the same creature ? the creature of whom God said, as 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 93 

he said of all his works, " He is very good ;" just what 
he should be, a living image of the living God ; but now 
lower than the beasts of the field ? 4. This account 
could never haye been credited had not the indisputable 
proofs and evidences of it been continued by uninter- 
rupted succession to the present time. All the descend 
ants of this first guilty pair resemble their degenerate 
ancestors, and copy their conduct. The original mode 
of transgression is still continued, and the original sin 
in consequence. Here are the proofs: — 1. Every hu- 
man being is endeavouring to obtain knowledge by un- 
lawful means, even while the lawful means and every 
available help are at hand. 2. They are endeavouring 
to be independent, and to live without God in the world ; 
hence prayer, the language of dependence on God's 
providence and grace, is neglected, I might say detested, 
by the great majority of men. Had I no other proof 
than this that man is a fallen creature, my soul would 
bow to this evidence. 3. Being destitute of the true 
knowledge of God, they seek privacy for their crimes, 
not considering that the eye of God is upon them, being 
only solicitous to hide them from the eye of man. 

The simple, plain, easy condition on which depended 
his immortality, man broke ; and thus forfeited his life 
to the blessing with which he was naturally endowed ; 
and thus corruption and decay, and a disorderly course 
of nature, were superinduced. The air that he breathed 
became unfriendly to the continual support of life ; the 
seeds of dissolution were engendered in his constitution ; 
and out of these various diseases sprang, which, by 
their repeated attacks, sapped the foundation of life, till 
at last the fruit of his dissolution verified the judgment 
of his Creator ; for, after living a dying life, it was at 
last terminated by death. 

There was not only no death before sin, but also no 
predisposing cause of death: nothing that in the course 
of nature could bring it about. The ground was fertile, 
and it seems there were neither noxious nor trouble- 
some productions from the soil ; and the benediction of 
the Most High rested upon the earth, mountains, hills, 
plains, and valleys. But when sin entered, what a 
change ! The glebe becomes stubborn and intractable ; 
noxious and troublesome weeds have their full growth ; 



94 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 

though the husbandman exerts all his muscular force 
in painful and exhausting labour, his toil is ill repaid ; 
thorns and thistles — every genus, family, and order of 
injurious plants spring up with rapid speed into de- 
structive perfection; and often, when the labourer is 
about to fill his arms with the productions of a painfully 
earned harvest, a blight vitiates the grain ; — tornadoes 
and tempests shake it out of its husk, and give it to the 
fowls of the air, or tear up the stalks from the root and 
scatter them to the winds of heaven ; — or land floods 
carry off the shocks which stood nearly ready to be 
housed ; — and thus the hope of the husbandman perishes. 
By these, and by various other means, does the right- 
eous God fulfil the purposes of his justice, and accom- 
plish his declaration, " In sorrow shalt thou eat of it ;" 
for on thy account the earth itself is cursed. Thou 
shalt return to the ground whence thou wert taken. 
Thou hast forfeited thy natural happiness and immor- 
tality ; death spiritual has already entered thy soul, and 
the death of thy body shall soon succeed — Thou shalt 
die. 

Man is not what God made him. Were the Scrip- 
tures silent on the subject, all reason and common sense 
would at once declare that it is impossible that the infi- 
nitely perfect God could make a morally imperfect, 
much less a corrupt and sinful being. Yet God is the 
maker of man, and he tells us that he made him in his 
own image, and in his own likeness ; it follows, then, 
that man has fallen from that state of holiness and per- 
fection in which he was created. And that his fall took 
place in the head and root of human nature, before any 
of the generations of men were propagated on the earth, 
is evident, not only from the declaration of God himself 
in his word, but also from this strong commanding fact, 
that there never was yet discovered a nation or tribe of 
holy or righteous men in any part of the world ; nor is 
there a record that any such people was ever known. 
This is a truly surprising circumstance, and a most 
absolute proof that not only all mankind are now fallen 
and sinful, but have ever been in the same state : and 
this fall must have taken place previously to the propa- 
gation of mankind ; for, had it not taken place in our 
first parents before they began to propagate and people 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 95 

the earth, the heads of families and their successors 
who might have been born previously to such fall, could 
not have partaken of the contagion ; and consequently 
must have been the progenitors of nations doing right- 
eousness, loving God with all their heart, soul, mind, 
and strength ; and their neighbour as themselves. But 
no such nation exists ; no such nation ever did exist. 
Thus we find that universal experience and knowledge 
agree with and confirm the account given in the book 
of Genesis of the fall of man. The root being cor- 
rupted, the fruit also must be corrupt; the fountain 
being poisoned, the streams must be impure. All men 
coming into the world in the way of natural generation 
must be precisely the same with him from whom they 
derive their being. The body, soul, and spirit of all the 
descendants of Adam must partake of his moral imper- 
fections ; for it is an inflexible and invariable law in 
nature that "like shall produce its like." We, there- 
fore, seeing this total corruption of human nature, no 
longer hope to gather grapes off thorns or figs off 
thistles. 

Experience not only confirms the great but tremen- 
dous truth, that all mankind are fallen from the image 
of God, but it shows us that man has naturally a pro- 
pensity to do evil, and none to do good ; yea, to do evil, 
when it is most demonstrably to his own hurt ; that 
the great principles of self-love and self-interest weigh 
nothing against the sinful propensities of his mind ; that 
he is continually and confessedly running to his own 
ruin ; and has of himself no power or influence by which 
he can correct, restrain, or destroy the viciousness of his 
own nature ; in short, that he "lieth in the wicked one," 
with an unavailing wish, yet without any efficient power, 
to rise. Understanding, judgment, and reason, those so 
much boasted, strong and commanding powers of the 
soul, which should regulate all the inferior faculties, are 
themselves so fallen, enfeebled, darkened, and corrupted, 
as to spiritual good, that they see not how to command, 
and feel not how to perform : there is, therefore, no 
hope that the man can raise himself from the fall, and 
replace himself in a state of moral rectitude ; for the 
very principles by which he should rise are themselves 
equally fallen with all the rest. Wishing- and willing are 



96 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 

all that he can exercise ; but those, through want of 
moral energy, are totally inefficient: God has inspired 
him with the desire to be saved ; and this alone places 
him in a salvable state. There is, therefore, in the 
human soul no self-reviviscent power, no innate prin- 
ciple which may develope itself, expand, and arise ; all 
is infirm ; all is wretched, diseased, and helpless. This 
view of the wretched state of mankind led one of the 
primitive fathers to consider the whole human race as 
one great diseased man, lying helpless, stretched out 
over the whole inhabited globe, from east to west, from 
north to south ; to heal whom the omnipotent Physician 
descended from heaven. 

From all the accounts we have of the most eminent, 
ancient, and celebrated nations, such as the Egyptians, 
Chaldeans, Assyrians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans, 
we find them, from their own relations, to have been 
destitute of the knowledge of the true God, and although 
cultivating the various arts and sciences, yet fierce, 
barbarous, and cruel. Their history is a tissue of frauds, 
aggressions, broken truces, assassinations, revolts, insur- 
rections, general disorder, and insecurity. Their laws 
despotic and oppressive ; their kings and governors 
tyrants ; their statesmen time-servers and oppressors of 
the common people ; their soldiers licensed plunderers , 
their heroes human butchers ; their conquests the blast 
of desolation and death on empires and nations ; their 
religion superstitious, gross, brutal, and unclean ; and 
their gods, and general objects of their worship, worse in 
their character and acknowledged practices than the most 
villanous and execrable of men. And what must be 
the imitations in their votaries when they had such 
originals to copy ? This was their general state and 
character. 

" But were not the highly cultivated Greeks and the 
learned and polite Romans illustrious exceptions ?" I 
except none of them from this general censure. Read 
their own histories : those of the republics of Greece ; 
and what do you find ? Treasons, insurrections, crimes, 
and carnage of all descriptions. Consult also the Roman 
writers on their republican, consular tribunal, regal 
and imperial states ; and see the portraits which those 
master painters have sketched ; and what do you behold? 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 97 

No caricatures, but likenesses from life — features fell 
and distorted, scowling through the deep and murky- 
shades which serve to relieve and make them prominent. 

Nor has the lapse of time mended the moral condition 
and character of the heathen nations. Our extensive 
commercial connections, not only with the nations of 
Europe and America, but also with the principal heathen 
kingdoms and states in most parts of the world, have 
brought us to an intimate acquaintance with the dark 
places of the earth which are filled with the habitations of 
cruelty ; and what have we seen 1 Darkness covering 
every land, and gross darkness the hearts of the people ; 
idolatry the most disgusting, and superstition the most 
foolish and degrading, closely associated with ridiculous 
ceremonies and cruel rites ; religious suicide ; abandon- 
ment of the aged to starvation when past labour, or left 
in the woods to be devoured by wild beasts w r hen in 
hopeless disease; exposure of infants ; burning of widows 
with the bodies of their deceased husbands, their own 
children lighting the funeral pyre ; the most painful, un- 
meaning, and lengthened-out pilgrimages ; religious 
fasts, by which health and strength are exhausted; and 
feasts where the man sinks into the beast : — all these, 
and more of a similar kind, equally degrading and de- 
structive, prevail among the millions of Asia, and 
especially among what are called the civilized, mild, and 
pacific inhabitants of Hindostan. 

What a gradation is here ! 1. In our fall from God, 
our first apparent state is, that we are without strength ; 
have lost our principle of spiritual power, by having lost 
the image of God, righteousness and true holiness, in 
which we were created. 2. We are ungodly ; having 
lost our strength to do good, we have also lost all power 
to worship God aright. The mind which was made for 
God is no longer his residence. 3. We are sinners ; 
feeling we have lost our centre of rest, and our happi- 
ness, we go about seeking rest, but find none. What we 
have lost in losing God we seek in earthly things ; and 
thus are continually missing the mark, and multiplying 
transgressions against our Maker. 4. We are enemies ; 
sin indulged increases in strength ; evil acts engender 
fixed and rooted habits ; the mind, everywhere poisoned 
with sin, increases in averseness from good ; and mere 



98 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 

aversion produces enmity, and enmity acts of hostility, 
fell cruelty, &c. So that the enemy of God hates his 
Maker and his service ; is cruel to his fellow creatures ; 
" a foe to God was ne'er true friend to man ;" and even 
torments his own soul ! Though every man brings into 
the world the seeds of all these evils, yet it is only by 
growing up in him that they acquire their perfection : 
Nemo repente fuit turpissimus, " no man becomes a 
profligate at once ;" he arrives at it by slow degrees ; and 
the speed he makes is proportioned to his circumstances, 
means of gratifying sinful passions, evil education, bad 
company, &c, &c. These make a great diversity in 
the moral states of men. All have the same seeds of 
evil : Nemo sine vitiis nascilur, " all come denied into 
the world ;" but all have not the same opportunities of 
cultivating these seeds. Besides, as God's Spirit is con- 
tinually convincing the world of sin, righteousness, and 
judgment, and the ministers of God are seconding its 
influence with their pious exhortations, — as the Bible is 
in almost every house, and is less or more heard or read 
by almost every person, — these evil seeds are receiving 
continual blasts and checks, so that, in many cases, 
they have not a vigorous growth. These causes make 
the principal moral difference that we find among men ; 
though in evil propensities they are all radically the 
same. 

This completes their bad character ; they are down- 
right atheists, at least practically such. They fear not 
God's judgments, although his eye is upon them in their 
evil ways. There is not one article of what is charged 
against the Jews and Gentiles here that may not be 
found justified by the histories of both, in the most 
ample manner. And what was true of them in those 
primitive times is true of them still. With very little 
variation, these are the evils in which the vast mass of 
mankind delight and live. Look especially at men in a 
state of warfare ; look at the nations of Europe, who 
enjoy most of the light of God ; see what has taken 
place among them from 1792 to 1814; see what 
destruction of millions, and what misery of hundreds of 
millions, have been the consequence of Satanic excite- 
ment in fallen, ferocious passions ! O sin, what hast 
thou done ! How many myriads of souls hast thou 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MAN. 99 

hurried unprepared into the eternal world ! Who, 
among men or angels, can estimate the greatness of this 
calamity ! this butchery of souls ! What widows, what 
orphans are left to deplore their sacrificed husbands 
and parents, and their own consequent wretchedness ! 
And whence sprang all this ? From that, whence come 
all wars and fightings — the evil desires of men ; the lust 
of dominion ; the insatiable thirst for money ; and the 
desire to be sole and independent. This is the sin that 
ruined our first parents, expelled them from paradise, 
and which has descended to all their posterity ; and 
proves fully, incontestably proves that we are their 
legitimate offspring, the fallen progeny of fallen parents, 
children in whose ways are destruction and misery, in 
whose heart there is no faith, and before whose eyes 
there is nothing of the fear of God. 

What an awful character does God give of the in- 
habitants of the antediluvian world ! 1. They were 
fleshly, wholly sensual, the desires of the mind over- 
whelmed and lost in the desires of the flesh ; their souls 
no longer discerning their high destiny, but ever mind- 
ing earthly things, so that they were sensualized, 
brutalized, and become flesh ; incarnated so as not to 
retain God in their knowledge, and they lived seeking 
their portion in this life. 2. They were in a state of 
wickedness. All was corrupt within, and all unright- 
eous without; neither the science nor practice of re- 
ligion existed. Piety was gone, and every form of 
sound words had disappeared. 3. This wickedness was 
great, " was multiplied ;" it was continually increasing, 
and multiplying increase by increase, so that the whole 
earth was corrupt before God, and was filled with 
violence ; profligacy among the lower, and cruelty and 
oppression among the higher classes being only pre- 
dominant. 4. All "the imaginations of their thoughts 
were evil" — the very first embryo of every idea, the 
figment of every thought, the very materials out of 
which perception, conception, and ideas were formed, 
were all evil ; the fountain which produced them, with 
every thought, purpose, wish, desire, and motive was 
incurably poisoned. 5. All these were evil " without 
any mixture of good ;" the Spirit of God which strove 
with them was continually resisted, so that evil had its 



100 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 

sovereign sway. 6. They were evil continually ; there 
was no interval of good, no moment allowed for serious 
reflection, no holy purpose, no righteous act. What a 
finished picture of a fallen soul ! Such a picture as God 
alone, who searches the heart and tries the spirit, could 
possibly give. 7. To complete the whole, God repre- 
sents himself as repenting because he had made them, 
and as grieving at the heart because of their iniquities ! 
Had not these been voluntary transgressions, crimes 
which they might have avoided, had they not grieved 
and quenched the Spirit of God, could he speak of them 
in the manner he does here ? 8. So incensed is the 
most holy and the most merciful God, that he is deter- 
mined to destroy the work of his hands : " And the 
Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created." 
How great must the evil have been, and how provoking 
the transgressions which obliged the most compassionate 
God, for the vindication of his own glory, to form this 
awful purpose ! " Fools make a mock at sin," but none 
except fools. 

The wh&le world lietli in wickedness — lieth in the 
wicked one — is embraced in the arms of the devil, 
where it lies fast asleep and carnally secure, deriving its 
heat and power from its infernal fosterer. What a 
truly awful state ! And do not the actions, tempers, 
propensities, opinions, and maxims of all worldly men 
prove and illustrate this ? " In this short expression," 
says Mr. Wesley, " the horrible state of the world is 
painted in the most lively colours ; a comment on which 
we have in the actions, conversations, contracts, quarrels, 
and friendships of worldly men." Yes, their actions 
are opposed to the law of God ; their conversations 
shallow, simulous, and false ; their contracts forced, 
interested, and deceitful ; their quarrels puerile, ridicu- 
lous, and ferocious ; and their friendships hollow, insin- 
cere, capricious, and fickle ; — all, all the effect of their 
lying in the arms of the wicked one ; for thus they 
become instinct with his own spirit ; and because they 
are of their father, the devil, therefore his lusts will 
they do. 

Even the most unconcerned about spiritual things 
have understanding, judgment, reason, and will. And 
by nseans of these we have sesn even scoffers at divine 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MAN. 101 

revelation become very eminent in arts and sciences ; 
some of our best metaphysicians, physicians, mathema- 
ticians, astronomers, chymists, &c, have been known — 
to their reproach be it spoken and published — to be 
without religion ; nay, some of them have blasphemed 
it, by leaving God out of his own work, and ascribing to 
an idol of their own, whom they call "nature," the ope- 
rations of the wisdom, power, and goodness of the Most 
High. It is true that many of the most eminent in all 
the above branches of knowledge have been conscien- 
tious believers in divine revelation ; but the case of the 
other proves that, fallen as man is, he yet possesses 
extraordinary powers, which are capable of very high 
cultivation and improvement. In short, the soul seems 
capable of any thing but knowing, fearing, loving, and 
serving God. And it is not only incapable, of itself, 
for any truly religious acts ; but what shows its fall in 
the most indisputable manner is its enmity to sacred 
things. Let an unregenerate man pretend what he 
pleases, his conscience knows that he hates religion ; 
his soul revolts against it ; his " carnal mind is not sub- 
ject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be." There 
is no reducing this fell principle to subjection ; it is 
sin, and sin is rebellion against God ; therefore sin must 
be destroyed, not subjected ; if subjected, it would 
cease to be sin, because sin is in opposition to God : 
hence the apostle says, most conclusively, it cannot be 
subjected ; that is, it must be destroyed, or it will de- 
stroy the soul for ever. 

There is a contagion in human nature, an evil princi- 
ple, that is opposed to the truth and holiness of God. 
This is the grand hidden cause of all transgression. It 
is a contagion from which no soul of man is free : it is 
propagated with the human species ; no human being 
was ever born without it : it is the infection of our na- 
ture ; is commonly called original sin, — sin, because it 
is without conformity to the nature, will, and law of 
God ; and is constantly in opposition to all three. The 
doctrine of original sin has been denied by many, while 
its opposers, as well as those who allow it, give the most 
unequivocal proofs that they are subjects of its working. 
I have seen its opposers and supporters impugn and 
defend it with an asperity of temper and coarseness of 



102 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MAN. 

diction, that gave sufficient evidence of a fallen nature ; 
both, Jonahlike, thinking they did well to be angry ! 
A late Avriter on the subject has excelled in this way; 
and by his bad tempers spoiled his works. Evil tem- 
pers are leprous spots, which sufficiently indicate the 
deeply radicated contagion in the hearts of those in 
whose lives they are evident. 

The original infection or corruption of nature is the 
grand hidden cause, source, and spring of all transgres- 
sion. Iniquity is a seed that has its growth, gradual 
increase, and perfection. As the various powers of the 
mind are developed, so it diffuses itself, infecting every 
passion and appetite through their whole extent and 
operation. 

As a sinner is infected, so is he infectious ; by his 
precept and example he spreads the infernal contagion 
wherever he goes ; joining with the multitude to do evil, 
strengthening and being strengthened in the ways of 
sin and death, and becoming especially a snare and a 
curse to his own household. 

That a sinner is abominable in the sight of God and 
of all good men ; that he is unfit for the society of the 
righteous ; and that he cannot, as such, be admitted into 
the kingdom of God, needs no proof. It is owing to 
the universality of the evil that sinners are not expelled 
from society as the most dangerous of all monsters, and 
obliged to live without having any commerce with their 
fellow creatures. Ten lepers could associate together, 
because partaking of the same infection ; and civil 
society is generally maintained, because composed of a 
leprous community. 

All are born with a sinful nature ; and the seeds of 
this evil soon vegetate, and bring forth corresponding 
fruits. There has never been one instance of an imma- 
culate human soul since the fall of Adam. Every man 
sins, and sins too after the similitude of Adam's trans- 
gression. Adam endeavoured to be independent of 
God ; all his offspring act in the same way : hence 
prayer is little used, because prayer is the language of 
dependence ; and this is inconsistent with every motion 
of original sin. When these degenerate children of 
degenerate parents are detected in their sins, they act 
just as their parents did ; each excuses himself, and lays 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MAN. 103 

the blame on another. " What hast thou done ?" "The 
woman whom thou gavest me, — she gave me, and I 
did eat." "What hast thou done?" "The serpent 
beguiled me, and I did eat." Thus, it is extremely dif- 
ficult to find a person who ingenuously acknowledges 
his own transgression. 

Sin is represented as a king, ruler, or tyrant, who 
has the desires of the mind and the members of the body 
under his control ; so that by influencing the passions 
he governs the body. Do not let sin reign, do not let 
him work ; that is, let him have no place, no being in 
your souls ; because wherever he is he governs, less or 
more : and indeed sin is not sin without this. How is 
sin known I By evil influences in the mind, and evil 
acts in the life. But do not these influences and these 
acts prove his dominion ? Certainly, the very existence 
of an evil thought to which passion or appetite attaches 
itself, is a proof that there sin has dominion : for with- 
out dominion such passions could not be excited. Where- 
ever sin is felt, there sin has dominion ; for sin is sin 
only as it works in action or passion against God. Sin 
cannot be a quiescent thing : if it do not work, it does 
not exist. 

After all the proofs of man's natural excellence, we 
have ten thousand others of his internal moral depravity, 
and alienation from the divine life. The general tenor 
of his moral conduct is an infraction of the laws of his 
Creator. While lord of the lower world, he is a slave 
to the vilest and most degrading passions ; he loves not 
his Maker ; and is hostile and oppressive to his fellows. 
In a word, he is as fearfully and wonderfully vile, as 
he was " fearfully and wonderfully made ;" and all this 
shows most forcibly that he stands guilty before God, 
and is in danger of perishing everlastingly. 

Men may amuse themselves by arguing against the 
doctrine of original sin, or the total depravity of the 
soul of man ; but while there is religious persecution in 
the world, there is the most absolute disproof of all 
their arguments. Nothing but a heart wholly alienated 
from God could ever devise the persecution or maltreat- 
ment of a man, for no other cause than that he has given 
himself up to glorify God with his body and spirit, which 
are his. 



104 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MAN. 

Another proof of the fall and degeneracy of men is 
their general enmity to the doctrine of holiness ; they 
cannot bear the thought of being sanctified through 
body, soul, and spirit, so as to " perfect holiness in the 
fear of God." A spurious kind of Christianity is gain- 
ing ground in the world. Weakness, doubtfulness, lit- 
tleness of faith, consciousness of inward corruptions, 
and sinful infirmities of different kinds, are by some 
considered the highest proofs of a gracious state ; 
whereas in the primitive church they would have been 
considered as evidences that the persons in question 
had received just light enough to show them their 
wretchedness and danger, but not the healing virtue of 
the blood of Christ. 

The human heart, left to its own workings, either 
sinks in the mire, or falls over precipices. What aid 
has man ever found from Avhat is called natural reli- 
gion ? In comparison with revelation it is a rush light 
against the sun, however modelled by the inventions of 
man. 

Had man been left just as he was when he fell from 
God, he, in all probability, had been utterly unsalvable ; as 
he appears to have lost all his spiritual light and un- 
derstanding, and even his moral feeling. We have no 
mean proof of this, in his endeavouring to " hide him- 
self, among the trees of the garden," from the presence 
and eye of Him whom, previously to his transgression, 
he knew to be everywhere present ; to whose eye the 
darkness and the light are both alike ; and who discerns 
the most secret thoughts of the heart of man. Add to 
this, it appears as if he had neither self-abasement nor 
contrition ; and therefore he charged his crime upon 
the woman, and indirectly upon God ; while the woman, 
on her side, charged her delinquency upon the serpent. 
As they were, so would have been all their posterity, 
had not some gracious principle been supernaturally 
restored to enlighten their minds, to give them some 
knowledge of good and evil, of right and wrong, of 
virtue and vice, and thus bring them into a salvable 
state. 

TJie besetting sin — " the well circumstanced sin ;" 
that which has everything in its favour, — time, and place, 
and opportunity, the heart and the object ; and a sin in 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MAN. 105 

which all these frequently occur, and consequently the 
transgression is frequently committed. What we term 
the " easily besetting sin" is the sin of our constitution, 
the sin of our trade, that in which our worldly honour, 
secular profit, and sensual gratification are most fre- 
quently felt and consulted. Some understand it of ori- 
ginal sin, as that by which we are enveloped in body, 
soul, and spirit. Whatever it may be, the word gives 
us to understand that it is what meets us at every turn ; 
that it is always presenting itself to us ; that as a pair of 
compasses describe a circle by the revolution of one 
leg, while the other is at rest in the centre, so this, 
springing from that point of corruption within, called 
'* the carnal mind," surrounds us in every place ; we are 
bounded by it, and often hemmed in on every side ; 
it is a circular, well fortified wall, over which we must 
leap, or through which we must break. The man who 
is addicted to a particular species of sin (for every sin- 
ner has his way) is represented as a prisoner in this 
strong fortress. 

" The unpardonable sin," as some term it, is neither 
less nor more than ascribing the miracles of Christ, 
wrought by the power of God, to the spirit of the devil. 
Many sincere people have been grievously troubled with 
apprehensions that they had committed the unpardonable- 
sin ; but let it be observed that no man who believes 
the divine mission of Jesus Christ ever can commit this 
sin ; therefore let no man's heart fail because of it from 
henceforth and for ever. Amen. 

If we look on sin in itself, our minds get soon 
bounded in their views, by particular acts of transgres- 
sion, of which we can scarcely perceive the turpitude 
and demerit, as we neither consider the principle 
whence they have proceeded, " the carnal mind, which 
is enmity against God," nor the nature and dignity 
of that God against whom they are committed. But 
when we consider the infinite dignity of Jesus, whose 
passion and death were required to make atonement 
for sin, then we shall see it as exceeding sinful, that its 
vitiosity and turpitude are beyond all comparisons and 
description. 

5* 



106 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CHRIST. 

VI.— CHRIST. 

The Divinity of Christ.— Four things are asserted 
in Col. i, 16, 17 :— 

1. That Jesus Christ is the Creator of the universe ; 
of all things visible and invisible ; of all things that had 
a beginning, whether they exist in time or in eternity. 

2. That whatsoever was created was created for him- 
self; that he was the sole end of his own work. 

3. That he was prior to all creation ; to all beings, 
whether in the visible or invisible world. 

4. That he is the Preserver and Governor of all 
things ; "for by him all things consist." 

Now, allowing St. Paul to have understood the terms 
which he used, he must have considered Jesus Christ as 
being truly and properly God : — 

1. Creation is the proper work of an infinite, un- 
limited, and unoriginated Being, possessed of all per- 
fections in their highest degrees, capable of knowing, 
willing, and working infinitely, unlimitedly, and with 
out control : and as creation signifies the production 
of being where all was absolute nonentity ; so it neces- 
sarily implies that the Creator acted of and from him- 
self: for as previously to this creation there was no 
being, consequently he could not be actuated by any 
motive, reason, or impulse, without himself; which 
would argue that there was some being to produce the 
motive or impulse, or to give the reason. Creation, 
therefore, is the work of Him who is unoriginated, in- 
finite, unlimited, and eternal ; but Jesus Christ is the 
Creator of all things ; therefore Jesus Christ must be, 
according to the plain construction of the apostle's 
words, truly and properly God. 

2. As previously to creation there was no being but 
God, consequently the great First Cause must, in the 
exertion of his creative energy, have respect to him- 
self alone; for he could no more have respect to that 
which had no existence, than he could be moved by 
nonexistence to produce existence or creation. The 
Creator, therefore, must make every thing for himself. 
Should it be objected that Christ created officially, or by 
delegation, I answer, This is impossible ; for as creation 
requires absolute and unlimited power or omnipotence, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY CHRIST. 107 

there can be but one Creator, because it is impossible 
that there can be two or more omnipotent, infinite, or 
eternal beings. It is therefore evident that creation 
cannot be effected officially, or by delegation ; for this 
would imply a being conferring the office, and delegating 
such power ; and that the being to which it was dele- 
gated was a dependent being, — consequently not un- 
originated or eternal. But this the nature of creation 
proves to be absurd: 1. The thing being impossible in 
itself, because no limited being could produce a work 
that necessarily requires omnipotence. 2. It is impos- 
sible, because, if omnipotence be delegated, he to whom 
it is delegated had it not before ; and he who delegates 
it ceases to have it, and consequently ceases to be God ; 
and the other to whom it is delegated becomes God; 
because such attributes as those with which he is sup- 
posed to be invested are essential to the nature of God. 
On this supposition God ceases to exist, though infinite 
and eternal ; and another not naturally infinite and 
eternal becomes such ; and thus an infinite and eternal 
being is produced in time, and has a beginning, which 
is absurd. Therefore, as Christ is the Creator, he did 
not create by delegation, or in any official way. Again, 
if he had created by delegation, or officially, it would 
have been for that Being who gave him that office, and 
delegated to him the requisite power ; but the text says 
that "all things were created by him, and for him," 
which is a demonstration that the apostle understood 
Jesus Christ to be the end of his own work, and truly 
and essentially God. 

3. As all creation necessarily exists in time, and had 
a commencement ; and there was an infinite duration 
in which it did not exist; whatever was before or prior 
to that must be no part of creation ; and the Being who 
existed prior to creation, and " before all things," — all 
existence of eveiy kind — must be the unoriginated and 
eternal God : but St. Paul says, Jesus Christ " was 
before all things ;" ergo, the apostle conceived Jesus 
Christ to be truly and essentially God. 

4. As every effect depends upon its cause, and can- 
not exist without it, so creation, which is an effect of 
the power and skill of the Creator, can only exist and 
be preserved by a continuance oi that energy that first 



10S CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CHRIST. 

gave it being ; hence God, as the Preserver, is as 
necessary to the continuance of all things, as God, as 
the Creator, was to their original production : but this 
preserving or continuing power is here attributed to 
Christ ; for the apostle says, " And by him do all 
things consist ;" for, as all being was derived from him 
as its cause, so all being must subsist by him, as the 
effect subsists by and through its cause. This is an- 
other proof that the apostle considered Jesus Christ to 
be truly and properly God, as he attributes to him the 
preservation of all created things, which property of 
preserving belongs to God alone ; ergo, Jesus Christ is, 
according to the plain obvious meaning of every ex- 
pression in this text, truly, properly, independently, and 
essentially God. 

"In the beginning was the Word ;" that is, before 
any thing was formed, ere God began the great work 
of creation. This phrase fully proves, in the mouth of 
an inspired writer, that Jesus Christ was no part of the 
creation, as he existed when no part of that existed ; and 
that consequently he is no creature, as all created nature 
was formed by him. Now, as what was before creation 
must be eternal, and as what gave being to all things 
could not have borrowed or derived its being from any 
thing, therefore Jesus, who was before all things, and 
who made all things, must necessarily be the eternal 
God. 

In Genesis i, 1, God is said to have created all things. 
In John i, 3, Christ is said to have created all things ; 
the same unerring Spirit spoke in Moses and in the 
evangelists ; therefore Christ and the Father are one. 
To say that Christ made all things by a delegated power 
from God is absurd ; because the thing is impossible. 
Creation means causing that to exist that had no pre- 
vious being : this is evidently a work which can be 
effected only by Omnipotence. Now, God cannot dele- 
gate his omnipotence to another ; were this possible, he 
to whom this omnipotence was delegated would, in con- 
sequence, become God ; and he from whom it was 
delegated would cease to be such ; for it is impossible 
that there should be two omnipotent beings. 

From the first impression made by the reported mira- 
cles of Christ, Nicodemus could say, " No man can do 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY CHRIST. 109 

the miracles which thou doest, except God be with 
him." And every reasonable man, on the same evi- 
dence, would draw the same inference. But we cer- 
tainly can go much farther, when we find him, by his 
own authority and power, without the invocation of any 
foreign help, with a word, or a touch, and in a moment 
restoring sight to the blind, speech to the dumb, hear- 
ing to the deaf, and health to the diseased ; cleansing 
the lepers, and raising the dead. These are works 
which could only be effected by the omnipotence of 
God. This is incontestable. Therefore, while the 
cleansing of the lepers, and the feeding to the full so 
many thousands of men and women with five barley 
loaves and two small fishes, stand upon such irre- 
fragable testimony as that contained in the four evan- 
gelists, Jesus Christ must appear, in the eye of unbias- 
ed reason, as the Author of nature, the true and only 
Potentate, the Almighty and everlasting God. 

" I will, be thou clean." The most sovereign authority 
is assumed in this speech of our blessed Lord. I will. 
There is here no supplication of any power superior to 
his own ; and the event proved to the fullest conviction, 
and by the clearest demonstration, that his authority 
was absolute, and his power unlimited. 

What an astonishing manifestation of omnific and 
creative energy must the reproduction of a hand, foot, 
&c, be at the- word or touch of Jesus ! As this was a 
mere act of creative power, like that of multiplying the 
bread, those who allow that the above is the meaning 
of the word will hardly attempt to doubt the proper 
divinity of Christ. 

How much must this person be superior to men ! 
They are brought into subjection by unclean spirits ; 
this person subjects unclean spirits to himself. 

If Jesus Christ were not equal with the Father, could 
he have claimed this equality of power without being 
guilty of impiety and blasphemy ? Surely not. And 
does he not in the fullest manner assert his Godhead, 
and his equality with the Father, by claiming and pos- 
sessing all the authority in heaven and earth? 

" There am I in the midst." None but God could 
say these words, to say them with truth ; because God 
alone is everywhere present, and these words refer to 



110 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY CHRIST. 

his omnipresence. Wherever — suppose millions of 
assemblies were collected in the same moment in dif- 
ferent places of the creation, (which is a very possible 
case,) this promise states that Jesus is in each of them. 
Can any, therefore, say these words except that God 
who fills both heaven and earth ? But Jesus says these 
words : ergo — Jesus is God. 

How correct is the foreknowledge of Jesus Christ ! 
Even the minutest circumstances are comprehended 
by it ! 

To worship any creature is idolatry : Christ is to be 
honoured even as the Father is honoured ; therefore 
Christ is not a creature ; and if not a creature, conse- 
quently the Creator. 

Jesus Christ can be no creature, else the angels who 
worship him must be guilty of idolatry, and God the 
author of that idolatry, who commanded those angels to 
worship Christ. Take Deity away from any redeeming 
act of Christ, and redemption is ruined. 

The Incarnation of Christ. — We must carefully 
distinguish the two natures in Christ, the divine and 
human. As man, he laboured, fainted, hungered, was 
thirsty ; ate, drank, slept, suffered, and died. As God, 
he created all things, governs all, worked the most 
stupendous miracles ; is omniscient, omnipresent, and 
is the Judge, as well as the Maker, of the whole human 
race. As God and man, combined in one person, he 
suffered for man, died for man, rose again for man ; 
causes repentance and remission of sins to be preached 
in the world in his name ; forgives iniquity ; dispenses 
the gifts and graces of the Holy Ghost ; is Mediator 
between God and man ; and the sole Head and Governor 
of his church. 

It was necessary that the fullest evidence should be 
given, not only of our Lord's divinity, but also of his 
humanity : his miracles sufficiently attested the for- 
mer ; his hunger, weariness, and agony in the gar- 
den, as well as his death and burial, were proofs of the 
latter. 

He was a man, that he might suffer and die for the 
offences of man; for justice and reason both required 
that the nature that sinned should suffer for the sin. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY CHRIST. Ill 

But he was God, that the suffering might be stamped 
with an infinite value. 

That God manifested in the flesh is a great mystery 
none can doubt ; but it is what God himself has most 
positively asserted, John i, 1-14, and is the grand subject 
of the New Testament. How this could be we cannot 
tell ; indeed the union of the soul with its body is not 
less mysterious ; we can just as easily comprehend the 
former as the latter : and how believers can become 
" habitations of God through the Spirit," is equally 
inscrutable to us. Yet all these are facts sufficiently 
and unequivocally attested ; and on which scarcely any 
rational believer, or sound Christian philosopher enter- 
tains a doubt. These things are so ; but how they are 
so belongs to God alone to comprehend ; and, as the 
manner is not explained in any part of divine reve- 
lation, though the facts themselves are plain, yet the 
proofs and evidences of the reasons of these facts, and 
the manner of their operation, lie beyond the sphere of 
human knowledge. 

Reason, in reference to the incarnation, can at least 
proceed thus : " I have an immortal spirit ; it dwells in 
and actuates my mortal body; as, then, my soul can 
dwell in my body, so could the Deity dwell in the man 
Christ Jesus." 

He who can believe that Isaiah, or any of the prophets 
spoke by inspiration, that is, " as they were moved by 
the Holy Ghost," must believe in the possibility of the 
incarnation of Christ. And he who can believe it pos- 
sible that Christ can dwell in the hearts of his followers, 
can as easily believe that the Messiah or Logos, which 
was in the beginning with God, and was God, " was 
made flesh, and dwelt among us full of grace and truth," 
John i, 14. Reason says, If the one were possible, so 
is the other ; and as one is fact, so may the other be 
also. The possibility of the thing is evident : God says 
the fact has taken place : that, therefore, which faith 
saw before to be possible and probable, it sees now to 
be certain ; for God's testimony added puts all doubts 
to flight. The Lord Jesus, the Almighty's Fellow, was 
incarnated of the Holy Ghost, and was made man ; and 
by being God and man was every way qualified to be 
Mediator between God and man 



11£ CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CHRIST. 

But while we distinguish the two natures in Jesus 
Christ, we must not suppose that the sacred writers 
always express these two natures by distinct and appro- 
priate names : the names given to our blessed Lord are 
used indifferently to express his whole nature : Jesus 
Christ, Jesus the Christ, the Messiah, Son of man, Son 
of God, beloved Son, only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus 
Christ, our Saviour, &.c, &c, are all repeatedly and in- 
discriminately used to designate his whole person as God 
and man, in reference to the great work of human salva- 
tion, which, from its nature, could not be accomplished 
but by such a union. 

The Offices of Christ. — No person ever born could 
boast, in a direct line, a more illustrious ancestry than 
Jesus Christ. Among his progenitors, the regal, sacer- 
dotal, and prophetic offices existed in all their glory 
and splendour. 

Christ alone was Prophet, Priest, and King; and pos- 
sessed and executed these offices in such a supereminent 
degree as no human being ever did, or ever could do. 

Jesus is a Prophet to reveal the will of God, and in- 
struct men in it. He is a Priest, to offer up sacrifice, 
and make atonement for the sin of the world. He is 
Lord, to rule over and rule in the souls of the children 
of men ; in a word, he is Jesus the Saviour, to deliver 
from the power, guilt, and pollution of sin ; to enlarge 
and vivify, by the influence of his Spirit ; to preserve in 
the possession of the salvation which he has communi- 
cated ; to seal those who believe heirs of glory ; and at 
last to receive them into the fulness of beatitude in his 
eternal glory. 

Jesus was ever acting the part of the philosopher, 
moralist, and divine, as well as that of the Saviour of 
sinners. In his hand every providential occurrence 
and every object of nature became a means of instruc- 
tion ; the stones of the desert, the lilies of the field, the 
fowls of heaven, the beasts of the forests, fruitful and 
unfruitful trees, with every ordinary occurrence, were so 
many grand texts from which he preached the most 
illuminating and impressive sermons, for the instruction 
and salvation of his audience. This wisdom and con- 
descension cannot be sufficiently admired. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CHRIST. 113 

It is worthy of remark that on the fourth day of the 
creation the sun was formed, and then " first tried his 
beams athwart the gloom profound ;" and at the con- 
clusion of the fourth millenary from the creation, 
according to the Hebrew, the Sun of righteousness 
shone upon the world, as deeply sunk in that mental 
darkness produced by sin as the ancient world was 
while teeming darkness held the dominion, till the 
sun was created as the dispenser of light. What would 
the natural world be without the sun? A howling 
waste in which neither animal nor vegetable life could 
possibly be sustained. And what would the moral 
world be without Jesus Christ, and the light of his word 
and Spirit? Just what those parts now are where his 
light has not yet shone : " Dark places of the earth, 
filled with the habitations of cruelty," where error 
prevails without end, and superstition, engendering 
false hopes and false fears, degrades and debases the 
mind of man. 

Christ is called the Prince of peace, because by his 
incarnation, sacrifice, and mediation he procures and 
establishes peace between God and man ; heals the 
breaches and dissensions between heaven and earth, 
reconciling both ; and produces glory to God in the 
highest, and on earth peace and good will among men. 
His residence is peace, and quietness, and assurance for 
ever, in every believing and upright heart. 

In all his miracles Jesus showed the tenderest mercy 
and kindness. Not only the cure, but the manner in 
which he performed it, endeared him to those who were 
objects of his compassionate regards. 

Reader, take him for thy King as well as thy Priest. 
He saves those only who submit to his authority, and 
take his Spirit for the regulator of their heart, and his 
word for the director of their conduct. How many do 
we find among those who would be sorry to be rated so 
low as to rank only with nominal Christians, talking of 
Christ as their Prophet, Priest, and King, who are not 
taught by his word and Spirit, who apply not for 
redemption in his blood, and who submit not to his 
authority ! Reader, learn this deep and important 
truth : " Where I am, there also shall my servant be ; 
and he that serveth me, him shall my Father honour." 



114 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CHRIST. 

The kingdom of Christ is truly spiritual and divine ; 
having for its objects the present holiness and future 
happiness of mankind. Worldly pomp as well as 
worldly maxims were to be excluded from it. Chris- 
tianity forbids all worldly expectations, and promises 
blessedness to those alone who bear the cross, leading a 
life of mortification and self-denial. 

The name of this kingdom should put you in mind of 
its nature: 1. The King is heavenly. 2. His subjects 
are heavenly minded. 3. Their country is heavenly, 
for they are strangers and pilgrims on earth. 4. The 
government of his kingdom is wholly spiritual and 
divine. • 

Christ will never accommodate his morality to the 
times, nor to the inclinations of men. 

Every thing that our blessed Lord did he performed 
either as our pattern or as our sacrifice. 

The incarnation of Christ might have been supposed 
sufficient to answer all the purposes of reconciling men 
to God. Could it be supposed that the good and bene- 
volent God would look on those with indifference who 
were represented by so august a person ; one who shared 
their nature, who assumed it for the very purpose of 
recommending them to God, and who, while he felt the 
sympathies and charities of humanity, was equally con- 
cerned for the honour and justice of God; and who, 
from the perfection of his nature, could feel no partiali- 
ties, nor maintain nor advocate the interests of one 
against the honour of the other ! I believe the reason 
of man could not have gone farther than this; and had 
revelation stopped here, reason would have thought 
that the incarnation was sufficient, and that even divine 
Justice could not have withheld any favour from such 
an Intercessor. Even this would have appeared a noble 
expedient, worthy of the benevolence of God ; and a 
sufficient reason why he should receive into his favour 
the beings who were, by this incarnation, united to Him 
who from eternity lay in the Father's bosom, and in 
whom he ever delighted. But God's " ways are not as 
our ways, nor his thoughts as our thoughts." Had man 
never sinned, and was only to be recommended to the 
divine notice, in order to receive favours, or even to 
obtain eternal life, this might have been sufficient ; but, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CHRIST. 115 

when he had sinned, and become a rebel and traitor 
against his Maker and Sovereign, the case was widely 
different. Atonement for the offence was indispensably 
requisite ; in default of which the penalty, fully knowr 
to him previously to the offence, must be exacted : " In 
the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die f 9 
" for the soul that sinneth it shall die." On this account 
the incarnation alone could not be sufficient, nor did it 
take place in reference to this, but in reference to his 
bearing the penalty due to man for his transgression ; 
for without being incarnated he could not have suffered 
nor died. 

It does appear to me that it is absolutely necessary to 
believe the proper and essential Godhead of Christ, in 
order to be convinced that the sacrifice which has been 
offered is a sufficient sacrifice. Nothing less than a 
sacrifice of infinite merit can atone for the offences of 
the whole world, and purchase for mankind an eternal 
glory : and if Jesus be not properly, essentially, and 
eternally God, he has not offered, he could not offer 
such a sacrifice. The sacred writers are nervous and 
pointed on this subject; nor can I see that any sinner, 
deeply convinced of his fallen, guilty state, can rely on 
the merit of his sacrifice for salvation, unless they have 
a plenary conviction of this most glorious and mo- 
mentous truth. As eternal glory must be of infinite 
value, if it be purchased by Christ, or be given as the 
consequence of his meritorious death, then that death 
must be of infinite merit, or else it could not procure 
what is of infinite value. So that, could we even sup- 
pose the possibility of the pardon of sin without such a 
merit, we could not possibly believe that eternal glory 
could be procured without it. It must be granted, if 
Christ be but a mere man, as some think, or the highest 
and first of all the creatures of God, as others suppose, 
let his actions and sufferings be whatever they may, 
they are only the obedience and sufferings of an origi- 
nated and limited: being, and cannot possess infinite and 
eternal merit. 

God destroys opposites by opposites. Through pride 
and self-confidence man fell ; and it required the humili- 
ation of Christ to destroy that pride and self-confidence, 
and to raise him from his fall. There must be an 



116 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CHRIST. 

indescribable malignity in sin, when it required the 
deepest abasement of the highest Being to remove and 
destroy it. The humiliation and passion of Christ were 
not accidental, they were absolutely necessary ; and had 
they not been necessary, they had not taken place. 
Sinner, behold what it cost the Son of God to save 
thee ! And wilt thou, after considering this, imagine 
that sin is a small thing? Without the humiliation 
and sacrifice of Christ, even thy soul could not be saved. 
Slight not, therefore, the mercies of thy God, by under- 
rating the guilt of thy transgressions and the malignity 
of thy sin. 

Christ's agony and distress can receive no consistent 
explication but on this ground : " He suffered, the just 
for the unjust, that he might bring us to God." O glo- 
rious truth ! O infinitely meritorious suffering ! And 
O, above all, the eternal love that caused him to undergo 
such sufferings for the sake of sinners ! 

There are many things in the person, death, and 
sacrifice of Christ, which we can neither explain nor 
comprehend. All we should say here is, " It is by this 
means that the world was redeemed ; through this sacri- 
fice men are saved : it has pleased God that it should be 
so, and not otherwise." 

The death of Christ was ordered so as to be witnessed 
by thousands ; and if his resurrection take place, it must 
be demonstrated ; and it cannot take place without being 
incontestable : such are the precautions used here to pre- 
vent all imposture. 

The more the circumstances of the death of Christ 
are examined, the more astonishing the whole will 
appear. The death is uncommon, the person uncom- 
mon, and the object uncommon ; and the whole is grand, 
majestic, and awful. Nature itself is thrown into unusual 
action, and by means and causes wholly supernatural. In 
every part the finger of God most evidently appears. 

How glorious does Christ appear in his death ! Were 
it not for his thirst, his exclamation on the cross, and 
the piercing of his side, we should have found it difficult 
to believe that such a person could ever have entered 
the empire of death ; but the divinity and the manhood 
equally appear, and thus the certainty of the atonement 
is indubitably established. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CHRIST. 117 

Fear of death was in Christ a widely different thing 
from what it is in men ; they fear death because of what 
lies beyond the grave ; they have sinned, and they are 
afraid to meet their Judge. Jesus could have no fear on 
these grounds : he was now suffering for man, and he 
felt as their expiatory victim ; and God only can tell, 
and perhaps neither men nor angels can conceive, how 
great the suffering and agony must be which, in the 
sight of infinite Justice, was requisite to make this 
atonement. Death, temporal and eternal, was the por- 
tion of man ; and now Christ is to destroy death by 
agonizing and dying ! The tortures and torments ne- 
cessary to effect this destruction Jesus Christ alone could 
feel, Jesus Christ alone could sustain, Jesus Christ alone 
can comprehend. 

He died for every human soul, for all who are par- 
takers of the same nature which he has assumed ; the 
merit and benefits of his death must necessarily extend 
to all mankind, because he has assumed that nature 
which is common to all. Nor could the merit of his 
death be limited to any particular part, nation, tribe, or 
individuals of the vast human family. It is not the na- 
ture of a particular nation, tribe, family, or individual, 
which he has assumed, but the nature of the whole 
human race : and " God has made of one blood all the 
nations, for to dwell on all the face of the earth," that 
all those might be redeemed with " one blood ;" for he 
is the kinsman of the whole. The merit of his death 
must, therefore, extend to every man, unless we can find 
individuals or families that have not sprung from that 
stock of which he became incarnated. His death must 
be infinitely meritorious, and extend in its benefits to all 
who are partakers of the same nature, because he was 
God manifested in the flesh ; and to contract or limit 
that merit, that it should apply only to a few, or even to 
any multitudes short of the whole human race, is one 
of those things which is impossible to God himself, be- 
cause it involves a moral contradiction. He could no 
more limit the merit of that death, than he could limit 
his own eternity, or contract that love which induced 
him to undertake the redemption of a lost world. 

If the many, that is, all mankind, have died through 
the offence of one ; certainly, the gift by grace, which 



118 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY CHRIST. 

abounds unto the many, by Christ Jesus, must have 
reference to every human being - . If the consequences 
of Christ's incarnation and death extend only to a few, 
or a select number of mankind, which, though they may 
be considered many in themselves, are few in compari- 
son of the whole human race, then the consequences of 
Adam's sin have extended only to a few, or to the same 
select number : and if only many and not all have fallen, 
only that many had need of a Redeemer. For it is 
most evident that the same persons are referred to in 
both clauses of the verse. If the apostle had believed 
that the benefits of the death of Christ had extended only 
to a select number of mankind, he never could have used 
the language he has done here ; though, in the first 
clause, he might have said, without any qualification of 
the term, " Through the offence of one, many we dead:" 
in the second clause, to be consistent with the doctrine 
of particular redemption, he must have said, " The grace 
of God, and the gift by grace, hath abounded unto some. 
As, by the offence of one, judgment came upon all men 
to condemnation ; so, by the righteousness of one, the 
free gift came upon some to justification. As, by one 
man's disobedience, many were made sinners ; so, by 
the obedience of one, shall som,s be made righteous. 
As in Adam all die ; so in Christ shall some be made 
alive." But neither the doctrine nor the thing ever 
entered the soul of this divinely inspired man. 

As the light and heat of the sun are denied to no 
nation nor individual, so the grace of the Lord Jesus — 
this also shines out upon all; and God designs that all 
mankind shall be as equally benefited by it in reference 
to their souls, as they are in respect to their bodies by 
the sun that shines in the firmament of heaven. But as 
all the parts of the earth are not immediately illuminated, 
but come into the solar light successively, not only in 
consequence of the earth's diurnal revolution around its 
own axis, but in consequence of its annual revolution 
around its whole orbit ; so this Sun of righteousness, 
who has shined out, is bringing every part of the habita- 
ble globe into his divine light; that light is shining more 
and more to the perfect day, so that gradually and suc- 
cessively he is enlightening every nation and every man; 
and when his great year is filled up, every nation of the 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CHRIST. 119 

earth shall be brought into the light and heat of this 
unspotted, uneclipsed, and eternal Sun of righteousness 
and truth. Wherever the gospel comes, it brings salva- 
tion, it offers deliverance from all sin to every soul that 
hears or reads it. As freely as the sun dispenses his 
genial influences to every inhabitant of the earth, so 
freely does Jesus Christ dispense the merits and bless- 
ings of his passion and death to every soul of man. 
From the influence of this spiritual Sun no soul is repro- 
bated, any more than from the influences of the natural 
sun. In both cases, only those who wilfully shut their 
eyes, and hide themselves ii\ darkness, are deprived of 
the gracious benefit. It is no objection to this view of 
the subject, that all nations have not yet received this 
divine light. When the earth and the sun were created, 
every part of the globe did not come immediately into 
the light ; to effect this purpose fully there must be a 
complete revolution, as has been marked above, and this 
could not be effected till the earth had not only revolved 
on its own axis, but passed successively through all the 
signs of the zodiac. When its year was completed, and 
not till then, every part had its due proportion of light 
and heat. God may, in his infinite wisdom, have deter- 
mined the times and the seasons for the full manifesta- 
tion of the gospel to the nations of the world, as he has 
done in reference to the solar light ; and when the Jews 
are brought in with the fulness of the Gentiles, then, and 
not till then, can we say that the grand revolution of the 
important year of the Sun of righteousness is completed. 
But, in the meantime, the unenlightened parts of the 
earth are not left in total darkness ; as there was light 

" ere the infant sun 



Was roll'd tog-ether, or had tried his beams 
Athwart the gloom profound." 

Light being created, and in a certain measure dispersed, 
at least three whole days before the sun was formed ; 
(for his creation was a part of the fourth day's work ;) 
so, previously to the incarnation of Christ, there was 
spiritual light in the world ; for he diffused his beams 
while his orb was yet unseen. And even now, where, by 
the preaching of his gospel, he is not yet manifested, he 
is that true Light which enlightens every man coming 



120 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CHRIST. 

into the world ; so that the moral world is no more left 
in absolute darkness where the gospel is not yet 
preached, than the earth was the four days which pre- 
ceded the creation of the sun, or those parts of the 
world are where the gospel has not yet been preached. 
The great year is rolling on, and all the parts of the 
earth are coming successively, and now rapidly, into the 
light. The vast revolution seems to be nearly com- 
pleted, and the whole world is about to be filled with the 
light and glory of God. Hasten the time, thou God of 
ages ! Even so. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. 

"His disciples came by night." This was as absurd 
as it was false. On the one hand, the terror of the dis- 
ciples, the smallness of their number, (only eleven,) and 
their almost total want of faith ; on the other, the great 
danger of such a bold enterprise, the number of armed 
men who guarded the tomb, the authority of Pilate and 
of the sanhedrim, must render such an imposture as this 
utterly devoid of credit. " Stole him away while we 
slept." Here is a whole heap of absurdities. 1. Is it 
likely that so many men would all fall asleep, in the 
open air, at once ? 2. Is it at all probable that a Roman 
guard should be found off their watch, much less asleep, 
when it was instant death, according to the Roman mi- 
litary laws, to be found in this state ? 3. Could they 
be so sound asleep as not to awake with all the noise 
which must be necessarily made by removing the great 
stone, and taking away the body ? 4. Is it at all 
likely that these disciples could have had time sufficient 
to do all this, and to come and return without being per- 
ceived by any person ? And, 5. If they were asleep, 
how could they possibly know that it was the disciples 
that stole him, or indeed that any person or persons stole 
him? — for, being asleep, they could see no person. 
From their own testimony, therefore, the resurrection 
may be as fully proved as the theft. 

The resurrection of Christ is a subject of terror to the 
servants of sin, and a subject of consolation to the sons 
of God ; because it is a proof of the resurrection of both, 
the one to shame and everlasting contempt, the other to 
eternal glory and joy. 

Christ, having made an atonement for the sin of the 
world, has ascended to the right hand of the Father, and 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY CHRIST. 121 

there he appears in the presence of God for us. In 
approaching the throne of grace, we keep Jesus, as our 
sacrificial victim, continually in view ; our prayers 
should be directed through him to the Father ; and un- 
der the conviction that his passion and death have pur- 
chased every possible blessing for us, we should, with 
humble confidence, ask the blessings we need; and, as 
in him the Father is ever well pleased, we should most 
confidently expect the blessings he has purchased. We 
may consider, also, this his appearance before the 
throne, in his sacrificial character, constitutes the great 
principle of mediation or intercession. He has taken 
our nature into heaven ; in that he appears before the 
throne ; this, without a voice, speaks loudly for the 
sinful race of Adam, for whom it was assumed, and on 
whose account it was sacrificed. On these grounds 
every penitent and every believing soul may ask and 
receive, and their joy be complete. By the sacrifice of 
Christ, we approach God ; through the mediation of 
Christ, God comes down to man. 

So important is the sacrificial offering of Christ in the 
sight of God, that he is still represented as being in the 
very act of pouring out his blood for the offences of 
man. This gives' great advantages to faith ; when any 
soul comes to the throne of grace, he finds a sacrifice 
there provided for him to offer to God. Thus all suc- 
ceeding generations find they have the continual sacri- 
fice ready, and the newly shed blood to offer. 

We are not only indebted to our Lord Jesus Christ 
for the free and full pardon which we have received, 
but our continuance in a justified state depends upon his 
gracious influence in our hearts, and his intercession 
before the throne of God. 

As we cannot contemplate the humiliation and death 
of Christ without considering it a sufficient sacrifice, 
oblation, and atonement for sin, and for the sin of the 
whole world ; so we cannot contemplate his unlimited 
power and glory, in his state of exaltation, without 
being convinced that he is able to save them to the utter- 
most that come unto God through him. What can with- 
stand the merit of his blood? What can resist the 
energy of his omnipotence? Can the power of sin ? — 
its infection? — its malignity? No! he can as easily 
6 



122 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY REPENTANCE. 

say to an impure heart, " Be thou clean," and it shall 
be clean ; as he could to the leper, " Be thou clean," and 
immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Reader, have 
faith in him ; for all things are possible to him that 
believeth. 

Jesus ! be thou the centre to which my soul shall in- 
cessantly gravitate ! Yea, more, — let it come more 
particularly into contact, and rest in thee for ever and 
ever ! Amen. 

VII.— REPENTANCE. 

Repentance implies that a measure of divine wisdom 
is communicated to the sinner, and that he thereby be- 
comes wise to salvation ; that his mind, purposes, opin- 
ions, and inclinations are changed ; and that, in conse- 
quence, there is a total change in his conduct. It need 
scarcely be remarked that, in this state, a man feels 
deep anguish of soul, because he has sinned against 
God, unfitted himself for heaven, and exposed his soul 
to hell. Hence a true penitent has that sorrow whereby 
he forsakes sin, not only because it has been ruinous to 
his own soul, but because it has been offensive to God. 

Though many have, no doubt, repeatedly felt smart 
twingings in their conscience, they have endeavoured to 
quiet them with a few such aspirations as these, "Lord, 
have mercy upon me ! Lord, forgive me, and lay not 
this sin to my charge, for Christ's sake!" Thus of the 
work of repentance they know little ; they have not 
suffered their pangs of conscience to form themselves 
into true repentance — a deep conviction of their lost 
and ruined state both by nature and practice ; con- 
viction of sin, and contrition for sin, have only had a 
superficial influence upon their hearts. Their repent- 
ance is not a deep and radical work ; they have not 
suffered themselves to be led into the various chambers 
of the house of imagery to detect the hidden abomi- 
nations that have everywhere been set up against the 
honour of God, and the safety of their own souls. When 
they have felt a little smarting from a wound of sin 
they have got it slightly healed ; and their repentance 
is that of which they may repent, — it was partial and 
inefficient ; and its end proves this. They have not, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — REPENTANCE. 123 

through the excess of sorrow for sin, fled to lay hold on 
the hope set before them ; and refused to be comforted 
till they felt that word powerfully spoken into their 
hearts, " Son ! daughter ! — be of good cheer, thy sins 
are forgiven thee." No man should consider his re- 
pentance as having answered a saving end to his soul, 
till he feels that " God for Christ's sake has forgiven 
him his sins," and the Spirit of God testifies with his 
spirit that he is a child of God. How few ingenuously 
confess their own sin ! They see not their guilt. They 
are continually making excuses for their crimes. The 
strength and subtlety of the tempter, the natural weak- 
ness of their own minds, the unfavourable circumstances 
in which they were placed, <fcc, &c, are all pleaded as 
excuses for their sins, and thus the possibility of repent- 
ance is precluded; for till a man take his sin to himself, 
till he acknowledge that he alone is guilty, he cannot 
be humbled, and consequently cannot be saved. Reader, 
till thou accuse thyself, and thyself only, and feel that 
thou alone art responsible for all thy iniquities, there is 
no hope of thy salvation. 

Reader, learn that true repentance is a work, — and 
not the work of an hour : it is not passing regret, but a 
deep and alarming conviction, that thou art a fallen 
spirit, — hast broken God's laws, — art under his curse, 
— and in danger of hell fire. 

Deep and overwhelming sorrow does not depend 
merely on the degree of actual guilt, but rather on the 
degree of heavenly light transfused through the soul. 
Man is a fallen spirit ; his inward parts are very wick- 
edness ; in his fall he has lost the image of God. Let 
God shine into such a heart ; let him visit every cham- 
ber in this house of imagery ; let him draw every thing 
to the light of his own holiness and justice, — and, put 
the case that there had not been one act of transgres- 
sion, what must be his feelings who thus saw, in the 
only light that could make it manifest, the deep de- 
pravity of his heart ! sin becoming indescribably sinful, 
the commandment ascertaining its obliquity, and illus- 
trating all its vileness ! He who sees his inward parts 
in God's light will not need superadded transgression 
to produce compunction and penitence. 

Confession of sin is essential to true repentance ; and 



124 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — REPENTANCE. 

till a man take the whole blame on himself he cannot 
feel the absolute need he has of casting his soul on the 
mercy of God that he may be saved. 

A genuine penitent will hide nothing of his state ; he 
sees and bewails not only the acts of sin which he has 
committed, but the disposition that led to these acts. 
He deplores not only the transgression, but " the carnal 
mind, which is enmity against God." The light that 
shines into his soul shows him the very source whence 
transgression proceeds ; he sees his fallen nature, as 
well as his sinful life; he asks pardon for his trans- 
gressions, — and he asks washing and cleansing for his 
inward defilement. 

If every penitent were as ready to throw aside his 
self-righteousness and sinful incumbrances as the blind 
man was to throw aside his garment, we should have 
fewer delays in conversions than we now have ; and all 
that have been convinced of sin would have been 
brought to the knowledge of the truth. 

Every true penitent admires the moral law, longs 
most earnestly for a conformity to it, and feels that he 
can never be satisfied till he awakes up after this divine 
likeness ; and he hates himself, because he feels that he 
has broken it, and that his evil passions are still in a 
state of hostility to it. 

There is one doctrine relative to the economy of 
divine providence little heeded among men ; I mean 
the doctrine of restitution. When a man has done 
wrong to his neighbour, though on his repentance and 
faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, God forgives him his 
sin, yet he requires him to make restitution to the per- 
son injured, if it lie in the compass of his power. If he 
do not, God will take care to exact it in the course of 
his providence. Such respect has he for the dictates 
of infinite justice that nothing of this kind shall pass 
unnoticed. Several instances of this have already 
occurred in this history, and we shall see several more. 
No man should expect mercy at the hand of God who, 
having wronged his neighbour, refuses, when he has it 
in his power, to make restitution. Were he to weep 
tears of blood, both the justice and mercy of God would 
shut out his prayer, if he made not his neighbour 
amends for the injury he may have done him. The 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY REPENTANCE. 125 

mercy of God, through the blood of the cross, can alone 
pardon his guilt: but no dishonest man can expect this; 
and he is a dishonest man who illegally holds the pro- 
perty of another in his hand. 

To man should defer his salvation to any future time. 
If God speaks to-day, it is to-day that he should be 
heard and obeyed. To defer reconciliation to God to 
any future period is the most reprehensible and destruc- 
tive presumption. It supposes that God will indulge 
us in our sensual propensities, and cause his mercy to 
tarry for us till we nave consummated our iniquitous 
purposes. It shows that we prefer, at least for the 
present, the devil to Christ, sin to holiness, and earth to 
heaven. And can we suppose that God will be thus 
mocked ? Can we suppose that it can at all consist 
with his mercy to extend forgiveness to such abomi- 
nable provocation ? What a man sows that shall he 
reap. If he sows to the flesh, he shall of the flesh reap 
corruption. Reader, it is a dreadful thing to fall into 
the hands of the living God. 

As all had sinned against God, so all should humble 
themselves before Him against whom they have sinned. 
But humiliation is no atonement for sin ; therefore re- 
pentance is insufficient, unless faith in our Lord Jesus 
Christ accompany it. Repentance disposes and pre- 
pares the soul for pardoning mercy, but can never be 
considered as making compensation for past acts of 
transgression. This repentance and faith were neces- 
sary to the salvation both of Jews and Gentiles ; for all 
had sinned and come short of God's glory. The Jews 
must repent who had sinned so much, and so long, 
against light and knowledge. The Gentiles must re- 
pent, whose scandalous lives were a reproach to man. 
Faith in Jesus Christ was also indispensably necessary ; 
for a Jew might repent, be sorry for his sin, and sup- 
pose that, by a proper discharge of his religious duty, 
and bringing proper sacrifices, he could conciliate the 
favour of God. No, this will not do ; nothing but faith 
in Jesus Christ, as the end of the law, and the great and 
only vicarious sacrifice, will do ; hence he testified to 
them the necessity of faith in this Messiah. The Gen- 
tiles might repent of their profligate lives, turn to. the 
true God, and renounce all idolatry ; this is well, but it 



126 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY REPENTANCE. 

is not sufficient: they also have sinned, and their 
present amendment and faith can make no atonement 
for what is past ; therefore they also must believe on 
the Lord Jesus, who died for their sins, and rose again 
for their justification. 

Penitent sinner ! thou hast sinned against God, and 
against thy OAvn life ! The avenger of blood is at thy 
heels. Jesus hath shed his blood for thee ; he is thy 
Intercessor before the throne ; flee to him ! Lay hold 
on the hope of eternal life which is offered to thee in 
the gospel ! Delay not one moment ! Thou art never 
safe till thou hast redemption in his blood ! God 
invites thee ! Jesus spreads his hands to receive thee ! 
God hath sworn that he willeth not the death of a 
sinner ; then he cannot will thy death ; take God's 
oath, take his promise, credit what he hath spoken 
and sworn ! Take encouragement ! Believe on the 
Son of God, and thou shalt not perish, but have everlast- 
ing life ! 

If sin have produced suffering, is it possible that suf- 
fering can destroy sin ? It is esseutiai, in the nature of 
all effects, to depend on their own causes ; they have 
neither being nor operation but what they derive from 
these causes ; and in respect to their causes, they are 
absolutely passive. The cause may exist without the 
effect ; but the effect cannot subsist without the cause. 
To act against its cause is impossible, because it has no 
independent being nor operation ; by it, therefore, the 
being or state of the cause can never be affected. Just 
so sufferings, whether voluntary or involuntary, cannot 
affect the being or nature of sin, from which they pro- 
ceed. And could we for a moment entertain the ab- 
surdity, that they could atone for, correct, or destroy 
the cause that gave them being, then we must conceive 
an effect wholly dependent on its cause for its being, 
to rise up against that cause, destroy it, and yet still con- 
tinue to be an effect when its cause is no more ! The 
sun, at a particular angle, by shining against a pyramid, 
projects a shadow according to that angle, and the 
height of the pyramid. The shadow, therefore, is the 
effect of the interception of the sun's rays by the mass 
of the pyramid. Can any man suppose that this sha- 
dow would continue well defined and discernible though 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY REFENTANCE. 127 

the pyramid were annihilated, and the sun extinct ? No. 
For the effect would necessarily perish with its cause. 
So sin and suffering - ; the latter springs from the former : 
sin cannot destroy suffering, which is its necessary 
effect ; and suffering cannot destroy sin, which is its 
producing cause. Ergo, salvation by suffering is absurd, 
contradictory, and impossible. 

" Wherefore then serveth the law ?" Of what real 
use can it be in the economy of salvation? I answer, 
it serves the most important purposes : 1. Its purity 
and strictness show us its origin : — it came from God. 
All religious institutions, merely human, though pre- 
tended from heaven, show their origin by extravagant 
demands in some cases, and by sinful concessions in 
others. In the law of God nothing of this appears, 
and therefore we see it a transcript of the divine nature. 
2. It shows us the perfection of the original state of 
man ; for as that law was suited to his state, and the 
law is holy, and the commandment holy, just, and good, 
so was his nature : it is, therefore, a comment on those 
words, "God made man in his own image, and in his 
own likeness." 3. It serves to show the nature of sin : 
the real obliquity of a crooked line can only be ascer- 
tained by laying a straight one to it. Thus, the fall of 
man, and the depth of that fall, are ascertained by the 
law. 4. It serves to convict man of sin, righteousness, 
and judgment : it shows him the deplorable state into 
which he is fallen, and the great danger to which he is 
exposed. 5. It serves as a schoolmaster, (or leader of 
children to school,) to convince us of the absolute ne- 
cessity and value of the gospel ; for that pure and moral 
law must be written upon the hearts of believers ; and 
its precepts, both in letter and spirit, become the rule 
of their lives. 

By the law is the knowledge of sin; for how can 
the finer deviations from a straight line be ascertained 
without the application of a known straight edge ? 
Without this rule of right, sin can only be known in a 
sort of general w r ay ; the innumerable deviations from 
positive rectitude can only be known by the application 
of the righteous statutes of which the law is composed. 
And it was necessary that this law should be given, that 
the true nature of sin might be seen, and that men 



128 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — REPENTANCE. 

might be the better prepared to receive the gospel ; 
finding that this law worketh only wrath, that is, 
denounces punishment, forasmuch as all have sinned. 
Now, it is wisely ordered of God, that wherever the 
gospel goes, there the law goes also ; entering every- 
where, that sin .may be seen to abound, and that men 
may be led to despair of salvation in any other way, or 
on any other terms, than those proposed in the gospel 
of Christ. Thus the sinner becomes a true penitent, 
and is glad, seeing the curse of the law hanging over 
his soul, to flee for refuge to the hope set before him in 
the gospel. 

Law is only the means of disclosing this sinful pro- 
pensity, not of producing it ; as a bright beam of the 
sun introduced into a room shows millions of motes 
which appear to be dancing in it in all directions. But 
these were not introduced by the light, they were there 
before, only there was not light enough to make them 
manifest ; so the evil propensity was there before, but 
there was not light sufficient to discover it. 

It was one design of the law to show the abominable 
and destructive nature of sin, as well as to be a rule of 
life. It would be almost impossible for a man to have 
that just notion of the demerit of sin, so as to produce 
repentance, or to see the nature and necessity of the 
death of Christ, if the law were not applied to his con- 
science by the light of the Holy Spirit ; it is then alone 
that he sees himself to be carnal and sold under sin ; 
and that the law and the commandment are holy, just, 
and good. And let it be observed that the law did 
not answer this end merely among the Jews in the days 
of the apostle ; it is just as necessary to the Gentiles to 
the present hour. Nor do we find that true repentance 
takes place where the moral law is not preached and 
enforced. Those who preach only the gospel to sin- 
ners, at best, only heal the hurt of the daughter of my 
people slightly. The law, therefore, is the grand instru- 
ment in the hands of a faithful minister to alarm and 
awaken sinners ; and he may safely show that every 
sinner is under the law, and consequently under the 
curse, who has not fled for refuge to the hope held out 
by the gospel: for in this sense also "Jesus Christ is 
the end of the law for justification to them that believe.' 1 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — FAITH, 129 



VIII.— FAITH. 



" Faith is the substance of things hoped for :" — Faith 
is the subsistence of things hoped for ; the demonstra- 
tion of things not seen. The word which we translate 
"substance," signifies "subsistence," " that which be- 
comes a foundation for another thing to stand on." And 
eAey^oj- signifies such a conviction as is produced in the 
mind by the demonstration of a problem, after which 
demonstration no doubt can remain, because we see from 
it that the thing is ; that it cannot but be ; and that it 
cannot be otherwise than as it is, and is proved to be. 
Such is the faith by which the soul is justified ; or, 
rather, such are the effects of justifying faith : on it sub- 
sists the peace of God, which passeth all understanding ; 
and the love of God is shed abroad in the heart where it 
lives, by the Holy Ghost. At the same time the spirit 
of God witnesses with their spirits who have this faith 
that their sins are blotted out ; and this is as fully mani- 
fest to their judgment and conscience, as the axioms, 
" A whole is greater than any of its parts :" " Equal lines 
and angles, being placed on one another, do not exceed 
each other." 

To provide a Saviour, and the means of salvation, is 
God's part ; to accept this Saviour, laying hold on the 
hope set before us, is ours. Those who refuse the way 
and means of salvation must perish ; those who accept 
'of the great covenant sacrifice cannot perish, but shall 
have eternal life. 

It is one of the least evils attending^ unbelief, that it 
acts not only in opposition to God, but it also acts in- 
consistently with itself. It receives the Scriptures in 
bulk, and acknowledges them to have come through 
divine inspiration ; and yet believes no part separately. 
With it the whole is true, but no part is true. The 
very unreasonableness of this conduct shows the prin- 
ciple to have come from beneath, were there no other 
evidences against it. 

" He that believeth on my son Jesus shall be saved ; 
and he that believeth not shall be damned." This is 
God's ultimate design ; this purpose he will never 
change; and this he has fully declared in the everlasting 

G* 



130 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — FAITH. 

gospel. This is the grand decree of reprobation and 
election. 

He who will not believe till he receives what he calls 
a reason for it, is never likely to get his soul saved. 
The highest, the most sovereign reason that can be 
given for believing, is, that God has commanded it. 

God has a right to be believed on his own word 
alone ; and it is impious, when we are convinced that 
it is his word, to demand a sign or pledge for it's fulfil- 
ment. 

Is not faith the gift of God ? Yes, as to the grace by 
which it is produced ; but the grace or power to believe, 
and the act of believing, are two different things. With- 
out the grace or power to believe no man ever did or 
can believe ; but with that power the act of faith is a 
man's own. God never believes for any man, no more 
than he repents for him ; the penitent, through this 
grace enabling him, believes for himself: nor does he 
believe necessarily or impulsively when he has that 
power ; the power to believe may be present long before 
it is exercised, else, why the solemn warnings with 
which we meet everywhere in the word of God, and 
threatenings against those who do not believe ? Is not 
this a proof that such persons have the power, but do 
not use it? They believe not, and therefore are not 
established. This, therefore, is the true state of the 
case ; God gives the power ; man uses the power thus 
given, and brings glory to God : without the power no 
man can believe ; with it, any man may. 

Christ never says, " Believe now for a salvation which 
thou now needest, and I will give it to thee in some 
future time." That salvation which is expected through 
works or sufferings must of necessity be future, as there 
must be time to work or suffer in ; but the salvation 
which is by faith must be for the present moment ; for 
this simple reason, it is by faith, that God may be mani- 
fested and honoured ; and not by works or by sufferings, 
lest any man should boast. To say that, though it is of 
faith, yet it may, and must, in many cases, be delayed 
(though the person is coming in the most genuine hu- 
mility, deepest contrition, and with the liveliest faith in 
the blood of the Lamb,) is to say that there is still some- 
thing necessary to be done, either on the part of the 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY FAITH. 131 

person, or on the part of God, in order to procure it ; 
neither of which positions has any truth in it. 

With Christ, God is ever well pleased ; with all that 
he has done, with all that he has suffered ; and with the 
end and object in reference to which he has lived, suf- 
fered, and died, he is well pleased : consequently he is 
well pleased to dispense the benefits of his priesthood, 
and sacrificial offering, to man. God requires no entreaty 
to induce him to pardon and save : he is infinitely dis- 
posed to do so ; and he has an infinite reason for this 
disposition. This is a grand principle in theology ; and a 
strong encourager of faith. He that believes that God 
is thus disposed to save his soul, and for the reasons 
above mentioned, can neither feel backwardness nor 
difficulty in coming to the throne of grace in order to 
obtain mercy. All the difficulties on the doctrine of 
faith have arisen from not considering this principle : 
and it is both painful and shameful to see to what 
magnitude and number these difficulties have been 
carried. Cases of conscience, cases of doubt, motives 
to faith, encouragement to weak believers, &c, have 
been multiplied by systematic preachers, and dealers in 
" bodies of divinity," to the great distraction of the 
church of God, and confusion of simple souls. And this 
is occasioned either by their not knowing or not attend- 
ing to the principle laid down above. Nothing is plainer 
than the way of salvation by faith in Christ, had it not 
been puzzled and blockaded, or broken up by the thrift- 
less systems of men. 

Is it not strange when man's circumstances and dan- 
ger are considered, that faith should be so little in action, 
that it is not one of the most popular, so to speak, of all 
the Christian graces? And is it not one of the wiles of 
the devil that persuades him that the exercise of this 
grace is the most difficult of all, and, in short, almost 
impossible without a miraculous power? Hence the 
saying, " We can no more believe than we can make a 
world." It is readily granted that without God we can 
do nothing ; but as he gives us power to discern, to re- 
pent, to hope, to love, and to obey ; so does he give us 
power to believe ; and to us the use or exercise of the 
power belongs. He does not discern, repent, hope, 
love, or obey for us, no more than he believes for us. 



132 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — FAITH. 

By using the grace he gives, we discern, repent, hope, 
believe, love, and obey. Without the grace we can do 
nothing; without the careful use of the grace, the grace 
profits us nothing. To every prescribed duty, God fur- 
nishes the requisite grace. The help is ever at hand, 
but we are not workers together with him ; hence we 
are, in general, receiving the grace of God in vain ; and, 
to excuse our negligence, indolence, and infidelity, 
we cry out, "We can do nothing!" "We have no 
strength!" "We can no more believe than we can 
make a world !" Our adversary knows well how to take 
advantage of such sayings, and, indeed, they are issues 
of his own temptations ; therefore it is his business to 
persuade us that these are all incontrovertible truths ! 
How strange, how disgraceful is it, that the words of the 
devil, and the wicked words of a lying world, and the 
antinomian maxims of fallen churches or fallen Chris- 
tians should be implicitly believed, while the words of 
the living God are not credited ! He commands us to 
believe ; reproaches us for our unbelief; tells us that if 
we believe not, Ave shall not be established ; asserts 
that he who believes not, has made God a liar ; pro- 
claims salvation by faith ; and finishes the confutation 
of our infidel speeches with, " He that believeth not 
shall be damned." Now, all this supposes, that he gives 
us the strength, and that we do not use it. Whose word 
so credible as the word of God? and whose word has 
less credence ? Many are volunteers in faith, where 
there is no promise, — for they can believe that we can- 
not be saved from all sin in this life, — that we shall be 
saved in the article of death, and that there is a purga- 
torial middle state, where we maybe cleansed, by penal 
fire, from vices that the blood of Jesus either could not 
or did not purge, and that the almighty Spirit of judg- 
ment and burning did not, or could not consume : and 
where there are exceeding great and precious promises, 
which in God are yea, and in Christ amen, they can 
scarcely credit any thing ! How abominable is this con- 
duct ! How insulting to God ! How destructive to the 
soul ! No wonder that many of our old and best writers 
have declaimed so much against this, calling unbelief 
" the damning sin," by way of eminence ; and that 
which binds all other sins upon the soul. Men may 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY FAITH. 133 

treat the word of God as they list, but these truths of God 
shall endure for ever : " He that believeth shall be saved, 
and he that believeth not shall be damned ;" and, " He 
is a shield unto all them that put their trust in him." 

Many touch Jesus who are not healed by him ; the 
reason is, they do it not by faith, through a sense of 
their wants, and a conviction of his ability and willing- 
ness to save them. Faith conveys the virtue of Christ 
into the soul, and spiritual health is the immediate con- 
sequence of this received virtue. 

Christ does not reveal himself to incredulous and dis- 
obedient souls. 

Without faith Jesus does nothing to men's souls now, 
no more than he did to their bodies in the days of his 
flesh. 

Faith disregards apparent impossibilities where there 
is a command and promise of God. The effort to believe 
is often that faith by which the soul is healed. 

Faith seems to put the almighty power of God into 
the hands of men ; whereas unbelief appears to tie up 
even the hands of the Almighty. 

Many are looking for more faith without using that 
which they have. It is as possible to hide this talent 
as any other. 

The great sacrifice ofFered by Christ is an infinite 
reason why a penitent sinner should expect to find the 
mercy for which he pleads. 

A weak faith is always wishing for signs and mira- 
cles. To take Christ at his word argues not only the 
perfection of faith, but also the highest exercise of 
sound reason. He is to be credited on his own word, 
because he is the "truth," and, therefore, can neither 
lie nor deceive. 

There are degrees in faith as well as in the other 
graces of the Spirit. Little faith may be the seed of 
great faith, and therefore is not to be despised. But 
many who should be strong in faith have but a small 
measure of it, because they either give way to sin, or are 
not careful to improve what God has already given. 

To get an increase of faith is to get an increase of 
every grace which constitutes the mind which was in 
Jesus, and prepares fully for the enjoyment of the 
kingdom of God. 



134 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY FAITH. 

He that has faith will get through every difficulty and 
perplexity ; mountains shall become mole hills, or plains, 
before him. 

Unbelief and disobedience are so intimately connected, 
that the same word in the sacred writings often serves 
for both. 

Why are not our souls completely healed? Why is 
not every demon cast out? Why are not pride, self- 
will, love of the world, lust, anger, peevishness, with all 
the other bad tempers and dispositions which constitute 
the mind of Satan, entirely destroyed % Alas ! it is 
because we do not believe ; Jesus is able ; more, Jesus 
is willing ; but we are not willing to give up our idols ; 
we give not credence to his word ; therefore sin hath a 
being in us, and dominion over us. 

Many, by giving way to the language of unbelief, 
have lost the language of praise and thanksgiving for 
months, if not years. 

There would be more miracles, at least of spiritual 
healing, were there more faith among those who are 
called believers. 

How is it that faith is so rarely exercised in the power 
and goodness of God ? We have not, because we ask 
not: our experience of his goodness is contracted, be- 
cause we pray little, and believe less. To holy men of 
old the object of faith was more obscurely revealed 
than to us, and they had fewer helps to their faith ; yet 
they believed more, and witnessed greater displays of 
the power and mercy of their Maker. Reader, have 
faith in God ; and know that to excite, exercise, and 
crown this, he has given thee his word and his Spirit ; 
and learn to know that without him you can do nothing. 

Christ dwells in the heart only by faith, and faith 
lives only by love, and love continues only by obedience ; 
he who believes loves, and he who loves obeys. He who 
obeys loves; he who loves believes; he who believes 
has the witness in himself; he who has this witness has 
Christ in his heart, the hope of glory ; and he who be- 
lieves, loves, and obeys, has Christ in his heart, and is a 
man of prayer. 

We shall never find a series of disinterested, godly 
living without true faith. And we shall never find true 
faith without such a life. We may see works of appa- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — FAITH. 135 

rent benevolence without faith ; their principle is 
ostentation ; and, as long as they can have the reward 
(human applause) which they seek, they may be con- 
tinued. And yet the experience of all mankind shows 
how short-lived such works are ; they want both prin- 
ciple and spring ; they endure for a time, but soon 
wither away. -Where true faith is there is God ; his 
Spirit gives life, and his love affords motives to righteous 
actions. The use of any divine principle leads to its 
increase. The more a man exercises faith in Christ, 
the more he is enabled to believe ; the more he believes, 
the more he receives ; and the more he receives, the 
more able he is to work for God. Obedience is his de- 
light, because love to God and man is the element in 
which his soul lives. Reader, thou professest to believe ; 
show thy faith, both to God and man, by a life con- 
formed to the royal law, which ever gives liberty and 
confers dignity. 

Faith and hope will as necessarily enter into eternal 
glory as love will. The perfections of God are absolute 
in their nature, infinite in number, and eternal in their 
duration. However high, glorious, or sublime the soul 
may be in that eternal state, it will ever, in respect to 
God, be limited in its powers, and must be improved 
and expanded by the communications of the supreme 
Being. Hence it will have infinite glories in the nature 
of God, to apprehend by faith, to anticipate by hope, 
and enjoy by love. 

From the nature of the divine perfections, there must 
be infinite glories in them, which must be objects of 
faith to disembodied spirits ; because it is impossible 
that they should be experimentally or possessively known 
by any creature. Even in the heaven of heavens we 
shall, in reference to the infinite and eternal excellences 
of God, walk by faith, and not by sight. We shall credit 
the existence of infinite and illimitable glories in him, 
which, from their absolute and infinite nature, must be 
incommunicable. And as the very nature of the soul 
shows it to be capable of eternal growth and improve- 
ment ; so the communications from the Deity, which 
are to produce this growth, and effect this improvement, 
must be objects of faith to the pure spirit ; and, if 
objects of faith, consequently objects of hope ; for as 



136 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — FAITH. 

hope is "the expectation of future good," it is insepara 
ble from the nature of the soul, to know of the existence- 
of any attainable good without making it immediately 
the object of desire or hope. And is it not this that 
shall constitute the eternal and progressive happiness of 
the immortal spirit — -namely, knowing, from what it has 
received, that there is infinitely more to be received ; 
and desiring to be put in possession of every communi- 
cable good which it knows to exist 1 

As faith goes forward to view, so hope goes forward 
to desire ; and God continues to communicate ; every 
communication making way for another, by preparing 
the soul for greater enjoyment, and this enjoyment 
must produce love. To say that the soul can have 
neither faith nor hope in a future state, is to say that 
as soon as it enters heaven it is as happy as it can pos- 
sibly be ; and this goes to exclude all growth in the 
eternal state, and all progressive manifestations and 
communications of God ; and consequently to fix a 
spirit, which is a composition of infinite desires, in a 
state of eternal sameness, in which it must be greatly 
changed in its constitution to find endless gratification. 

To sum up the reasoning on this subject, I think it 
necessary to observe, 1. That the term "faith" is here 
to be taken, in the general sense of the word, for that 
belief which a soul has of the infinite sufficiency and 
goodness of God, in consequence of the discoveries he 
has made of himself and of his designs, either by reve- 
lation, or immediately by his Spirit. Now we know 
that God has revealed himself, not only in reference to 
this world, but in reference to eternity ; and much of 
our faith is employed in things pertaining to the eternal 
world, and the enjoyments in that state. 2. That hope 
is to be taken in its common acceptation, the expecta- 
tion of future good ; which expectation is necessarily 
founded on faith, as faith is founded on knowledge. 
God gives a revelation which concerns both worlds, 
containing exceeding great and precious promises rela- 
tive to both. We believe what he has said on his own 
veracity ; and we hope to enjoy the promised blessings 
in both worlds, because He is faithful who has promised. 
3. As the promises stand in reference to both worlds, 
so also must the faith and hope to which these promises 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — FAITH. 137 

stand as objects. 4. The enjoyments in the eternal 
world are all spiritual, and must proceed immediately 
from God himself. 5. God, in the plenitude of his 
excellences, is as incomprehensible to a glorified spirit, 
as he is to a spirit resident in flesh and blood. 6. Every 
created intellectual nature is capable of eternal improve- 
ment. 7. If seeing God as he is be essential to the 
eternal happiness of beatified spirits, then the disco- 
veries which he makes of himself must be gradual ; 
forasmuch as it is impossible that an infinite, eternal 
nature can be manifested to a created and limited nature 
in any other way. 8. As the perfections of God are 
infinite, they are capable of being eternally manifested, 
and, after all manifestations, there must be an infinitude 
of perfections still to be brought to view. 9. As every 
soul that has any just notion of God must know that he 
is possessed of all possible perfections, so these per- 
fections, being objects of knowledge, must be objects 
of faith. 10. Every holy spirit feels itself possessed of 
unlimited desires for the enjoyment of spiritual good ; 
and faith in the infinite goodness of God necessarily 
implies that he will satisfy every desire he has excited. 
11. The power to gratify, in the divine Being, and the 
capacity to be gratified, in the immortal spirit, will 
necessarily excite continual desires, which desires, on 
the evidence of faith, will as necessarily produce hope, 
which is the expectation of future good. 12. All pos- 
sible perfections in God are the objects of faith ; and 
the communication of all possible blessedness the object 
of hope. 13. Faith goes forward to apprehend, and 
hope to anticipate, as God continues to discover his 
unbounded glories and perfections. 14. Thus discovered 
and desired, their influences become communicated, 
love possesses them, and is excited and increased by the 
communication. 15. With respect to those which are 
communicated, faith and hope cease, and go forward to 
new apprehensions and anticipations, while love con- 
tinues to retain and enjoy the whole. 16. Thus an 
eternal interest is kept up ; and infinite blessings, in 
endless succession, apprehended, anticipated, and en- 
joyed. 

The man who professes that it is his duty to worship 
God must, if he act rationally, do it on the convictior 



138 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — JUSTIFICATION. 

that there is such a Being, infinite, eternal, unoriginated, 
and self-existent ; the cause of all other being; on 
whom all being depends ; and by whose energy, bounty, 
and providence, all other beings exist, live, and are 
supplied with the means of continued existence and life. 
He must believe, also, that he rewards them that dili- 
gently seek him ; that he is not indifferent about his 
own worship; that he requires adoration and religious 
service from men ; and that he blesses and especially 
protects and saves those who in simplicity and upright- 
ness of heart seek and serve him. This requires faith ; 
such a faith as is mentioned above ; a faith by which 
we can " please God ;" and, now that we have an abun- 
dant revelation, a faith according to that revelation ; a 
faith in God through Christ, the great sin-offering, with- 
out which a man can no more please him, or be accepted 
of him, than Cain was. 



IX.— JUSTIFICATION. 

The following are a few of the leading acceptations 
of the verb, which we translate "to justify:" — 

1. It signifies to declare or pronounce one just or 
righteous ; or, in other words, to declare him to be 
what he really is : " He was justified in the Spirit," 
1 Tim. iii, 16. 2. To esteem a thing properly, Matt, xi, 
19. 3. It signifies to approve, praise, and commend, 
Luke vii, 29 ; xvi, 15. 4. To clear from all sin, 1 Cor. 
iv, 4. 5. A judge is said to justify, not only when he 
condemns and punishes, but also when he defends the 
cause of the innocent. Hence it is taken in a forensic 
sense, and signifies to be found or declared righteous, 
innocent, &c, Matt, xii, 37. 6. It signifies to set free, 
or escape from, Acts xiii, 39. 7. It signifies, also, to 
receive one into favour, to pardon sin, Rom. viii, 30; 
Luke xviii, 14; Rom. iii, 20; iv, 2; 1 Cor. vi, 11, <fcc. 
In all these texts the word "justify" is taken in the 
sense of remission of sins through faith in Christ Jesus ; 
and does not mean making the person just or righteous, 
but treating him as if he were so, having already for- 
given him his sins. 

Justification, or the pardon of sin, must precede sanc- 
tification ; the conscience must be purged or purified 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — JUSTIFICATION. 139 

from guilt, from all guilt, and from all guilt at once ; for 
in no part of the Scripture are we directed to seek 
remission of sins seriatim ; one now, another then, and 
so on. 

The doctrine of justification by faith is one of the 
grandest displays of the mercy of God to mankind. It 
is so very plain that all may comprehend it ; and so free 
that all may attain it. What more simple than this — 
Thou art a sinner, in consequence condemned to per- 
dition, and utterly unable to save thy own soul. All 
are in the same state with thyself, and no man can give 
a ransom for the soul of his neighbour. God, in his 
mercy, has provided a Saviour for thee. As thy life 
was forfeited to death because of thy transgressions, 
Jesus Christ has redeemed thy life by giving up his 
own ; he died in thy stead, and has made atonement to 
God for thy transgression ; and offers thee the pardon 
he has thus purchased, on the simple condition that 
thou believe that his death is a sufficient sacrifice, ran- 
som, and oblation for thy sin ; and that thou bring it, as 
such, by confident faith*to the throne of God, and plead 
it in thy own behalf there. When thou dost so, thy 
faith in that sacrifice shall be imputed to thee for right- 
eousness ; that is, it shall be the means of receiving 
that salvation which Christ has bought by his blood. 

The doctrine of the imputed righteousness of Christ, 
as held by many, will not be readily found in Rom. iv, 
where it has been supposed to exist in all its proofs. It 
is repeatedly said that faith is imputed for righteous- 
ness ; but in no place here that Christ's obedience to 
the moral law is imputed to any man. The truth is, 
the moral law was broken, and did not now require obe- 
dience ; it required this before it was broken ; but, after 
it was broken, it required death. Either the sinner 
must die, or some one in his stead ; but there was none, 
whose death could have been an equivalent for the 
transgressions of the world, but Jesus Christ. Jesus, 
therefore, died for man ; and it is through his blood, the 
merit of his passion and death, that we have redemp- 
tion ; and not by his obedience to the moral law in our 
stead : our salvation was obtained at a much higher 
price. Jesus could not but be righteous and obedient ; 
this is consequent on the immaculate purity of his 



140 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY JUSTIFICATION. 

nature ; but his death was not a necessary consequent. 
As the law of God can claim only the death of a trans- 
gressor — for such only forfeit their right to life — it is 
the greatest miracle of all that Christ could die, whose 
life was never forfeited. Here we see the indescribable 
demerit of sin, that it required such a death ; and here 
we see the stupendous mercy of God, in providing the 
sacrifice required. It is therefore by Jesus Christ's 
death, or obedience unto death, that we are saved, and 
not by his fulfilling any moral law. That he fulfilled 
the moral law, we know ; without which he could not 
have been qualified to be our Mediator ; but we must 
take heed lest we attribute that to obedience (which was 
the necessary consequence of his immaculate nature) 
which belongs to his passion and death. These were 
free-will offerings of eternal goodness, and not even a 
necessary consequence of his incarnation. 

This doctrine of the imputed righteousness of Christ 
is capable of great abuse. To say that Christ's per- 
sonal righteousness is imputed to every true believer, is 
not Scriptural : to say that he hdfe fulfilled all righteous- 
ness for us, in our stead, if by this is meant his fulfilment 
of all moral duties, is neither Scriptural nor true ; that 
he has died in our stead, is a great, glorious, and Scrip- 
tural truth ; that there is no redemption but through his 
blood is asserted beyond all contradiction in the oracles 
of God. But. there are a multitude of duties which the 
moral law requires, which Christ never , fulfilled in our 
stead, and never could. We have various duties of a 
domestic kind which belong solely to ourselves, in the 
relation of parents, husbands, wives, servants, &c, in 
which relations Christ never stood. He has fulfilled 
none of these duties for us, but he furnishes grace to 
every true believer to fulfil them to God's glory, the 
edification of his neighbour, and his own eternal profit. 
The salvation which we receive from God's free mercy, 
through Christ, binds us to live in a strict conformity to 
the moral law ; that law which prescribes our manners, 
and the spirit by which they should be regulated, and in 
which they should be performed. He who lives not in 
the due performance of every Christian duty, whatever 
faith he may profess, is either a vile hypocrite or a 
scandalous Antinomian. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — JUSTIFICATION. 141 

God is said to be " no respecter of persons" for this 
reason, among many others, that, being infinitely right- 
eous, he must be infinitely impartial. He cannot prefer 
one to another, because he has nothing to hope or fear 
from any of his creatures. All partialities among men 
spring from one or other of these two principles, hope 
or fear ; God can feel neither of them, and therefore 
God can be no respecter of persons. He approves or 
disapproves of men according to their moral character, 
He pities all, and provides salvation for all, but he loves 
those who resemble him in his holiness ; and he loves 
them in proportion to that resemblance, that is, the 
more of his image he sees in any the more he loves him, 
and e contra. And every man's work will be the evi- 
dence of his conformity or nonconformity to God ; and 
according to this evidence will God judge him. Here, 
then, is no respect of persons, God's judgment will be 
according to a man's work, and a man's work or con- 
duct will be according to the moral state of his mind. 
No favouritism can prevail in the day of judgment ; 
nothing will pass there but holiness of heart and life. 
A righteousness imputed, and not possessed and prac- 
tised, will not avail where God judgeth according to 
every man's work. It would be well if those sinners 
and spurious believers, who fancy themselves safe and 
complete in the righteousness of Christ, while impure 
and unholy in themselves, would think of this testimony 
of the apostle.* 

* The sentiments contained in the following letter are worthy 
the attention of the reader : — 

" Mlllbrook, Prescot, Jan. 21st, 1823. 
" My Dear Brother Dunn, 

"Last evening I received your letter of the 19th ult., and was 
not a little glad to hear from you : and still more rejoiced to hear 
such good news. I plainly see that every thing is going on as God 
usually conducts his work. I do not regret your being shut out of 
the churches; to such God never yet gave us a call: nor are we 
to build on other men's foundations. We have a work to do pecu- 
liar to ourselves. We know our own sorrows in the operation ; 
and no stranger intermeddles with our joy. I should not wonder 
to hear next that you are denounced from the pulpits as deceivers 
and heretics. Boldly proclaim all the truth. Preach it with all 
its proofs and evidences ; and leave that villanous stuff that is in 
concert with the Eleven Letters as perfectly unnoticed as if it ne- 
ver had existed. I am quite of Mr. Wesley's mind, that once ' we 
leaned too much toward Calvinism,' and especially in admitting, 



142 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY JUSTIFICATION. 

As eternal life is given in the Son of God, it follows 
it cannot be enjoyed without him. No man can have 
it without having- Christ ; therefore " he that hath the 
Son hath life," and "he that hath not the Son hath not 
life." It is in vain to expect eternal glory if we have 
not Christ in our heart. The indwelling Christ gives 
both a title to it and a meetness for it. This is God's 
record. Let no man deceive himself here. An indwell- 
ing Christ and glory; no indwelling Christ, no glory. 
God's record must stand. 

Who are Christ's flock? All real penitents ; all true 
believers ; all who obediently follow his example, 
abstaining from every appearance of evil, and in a holy 
life and conversation show forth the virtue of Him who 
called them from darkness into his marvellous light. 
" My sheep hear my voice and follow me." But who 

in any sense, the unscriptural doctrine of the imputed righteous- 
ness of Christ. I never use the distinction of righteousness im- 
puted, righteousness imparted, righteousness practised. In no 
part of the book of God is Christ's righteousness ever said to be 
imputed to us for our justification; and I greatly doubt whether 
the doctrine of Christ's active obedience in our justification does 
not take awaj' from the infinite merit of his sacrificial death : and 
whether by fair construction, and legitimate deduction, it will not 
go to prove, if admitted as above, that no absolute necessity of 
Christ's death did exist. For if the acts of his life justify in part, 
or conjunctly, they might, in so glorious a personage, have justi- 
fied separately and wholly; and consequently his agony and 
bloody sweat, his cross and passion, and his death, burial, and 
ascension would have been utterly useless, considered as acts and 
consequences of acts, called atoning. Our grand doctrine is, 
' We have redemption in his blood.' Nor can we ever success- 
fully comfort the distressed but by proclaiming Christ crucified; 
having been ' delivered for our offences, and raised again for our 
justification.' He is not represented in heaven as performing 
acts of righteousness for our justification ; but as the Lamb newly 
slain before the throne. I have long thought that the doctrine of 
imputed righteousness, as held by certain people, is equally com- 
pounded of Pharisaism and Antinomianism ; and, most certainly, 
should find very little trouble, by analysis or synthesis, to demon- 
strate the facts, little as its abettors think of the subject. But go 
on your way, preaching all our doctrines, but not in a controver- 
sial way : and if at any time you maybe obliged to repel invective, 
do it in the meekness of Christ. Our grand doctrines of the wit- 
ness of the Spirit, and Christian perfection, are opposed to all bad 
tempers, as well as bad words and works. 
" The peace of God be with you. Write often to 

" Your affectionate brother and friend, 

" A. Clarke." 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY JUSTIFICATION. 143 

are not his flock? Neither the backslider in heart, 
nor the vile Antinomian, who thinks the more he sins 
the more the grace of God shall be magnified in saving 
him ; nor those who fondly suppose they are covered 
with the righteousness of Christ while living in sin ; nor 
the crowd of the indifferent and the careless ; nor the 
immense herd of Laodicean loiterers ; nor the fiery 
bigots who would exclude all from heaven but them- 
selves, and the party who believe as they do. These the 
Scripture resembles to swine, dogs, goats, wandering 
stars, foxes, lions, wells without water, &c, &,c. Let 
not any of these come forward to eat of this pasture, or 
take of the children's bread. Jesus Christ is the good 
Shepherd ; the Shepherd who, to save his flock, laid 
down his own life. 

To forsake all, without following Christ, is the virtue 
of a philosopher. To follow Christ in profession, with- 
out forsaking all, is the state of the generality of Chris- 
tians. But to follow Christ, and forsake all, is the per- 
fection of a Christian. 

Talking about Christ, his righteousness, merits, and 
atonement, while the person is not conformed to his 
word and Spirit, is no other than solemn deception. 

The white robes of the saints cannot mean the right- 
eousness of Christ, for this cannot be washed and made 
white in his own blood. This white linen is said to be 
the righteousness of the saints, Rev. xix, 8; and this is 
the righteousness in which they stand before the throne ; 
therefore it is not Christ's righteousness, but it is a 
righteousness wrought in them by the merits of his blood 
and the power of his Spirit. 

We must beware of Antinomianism, that is, of sup- 
posing that, because Christ has been obedient unto 
death, there is no necessity for our obedience to his 
righteous commandments. If this were so, the grace 
of Christ would tend to the destruction of the law, and 
not to its establishment. He only is saved from his 
sins who has the law of God written in his heart, who 
lives an innocent, holy, and useful life. Wherever 
Christ lives he works ; and his work of righteousness 
will appear to his servants, and its effect will be quietness 
and assurance for ever. The life of God in the soul of 
man is the principle which saves and preserves eternally 



144 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — JUSTIFICATION. 

Adoption.* — Adoption signifies the act of receiving 
a stranger into a family, and conveying to him all the 
rights, privileges, and benefits belonging to a natural 
or legitimate child ; the receiving a child of a stranger 
into a family where there was none. 

This did not exist in the Jewish law ; it was properly 
a Roman custom, and among them was regulated by 
law : and it is to adoption, as practised among the 
Romans, that the apostle alludes in this place, Gal. iv, 5, 
as well as in various others in his epistles. 

Among the ancient Romans every house had its altar, 
its religious rites, and its household gods. All these, 
being considered the most sacred, were ever to be con 
tinued in that family ; and, on this account, if the 
family were in danger of becoming extinct, through 
want of children, adoption was admitted, that the 
family and its sacred rites and gods might be pre- 
served. This was one of the laws of the very ancient 
" twelve tables," so celebrated in the history of ancient 
Rome. 

When, then, a child was to be adopted into a strange 
family, his father took him, and presenting himself and 
his son before the magistrate, and five witnesses, who 
were Romans, he said, " I emancipate to thee this my 
son." Then the adopting father, holding a piece of 
money in his hand, and at the same time taking hold of 
his son, said, " I declare this man to be my son accord- 
ing to the Roman law, and he is bought with this 
money ;" and then gave it to the father as the price of 
his son, &c. 

Every Roman had the right of life and death over 
his children, even as they had over slaves. In the 
case of adoption this right was surrendered by the 
natural father to the adopting father ; and the person 
adopted entered into this new family as if it were his 
own naturally. He took his adopting father's name, and 
a legal right, not only to food, raiment, and all the 
comforts of life, but also to the inheritance. All the 
relatives of the new family bore the same relation to the 
adopted, as if they had been naturally his own ; and in 

* As adoption is not so much a distinct act of God, but is in- 
volved in our justification, I have not thought it necessary to give 
to it a separate chapter.— S. D. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY JUSTIFICATION. 145 

all privileges, rights, and legal transactions he was the 
same as if he had been born in that family. 

But he was still amenable to the laws, and must be in 
every respect obedient, attentive to the family honour, 
and to its interest. In case of rebellion against the 
parent, he might be put 10 death ; for the adopting 
father had the same authority over the adopted son as 
his own natural father had. 

As a father might disinherit his son, so might the 
adopting father disinherit the adopted. For it must be 
considered that the adopted son, while he stood in the 
state and privileges of a natural child, had no privilege 
beyond such. 

Without extending the parallel farther than is strictly 
necessary, we may observe, — 

1. That as a man had lost all the privileges of his 
natural filiation, to regain them he must be received 
into the family by way of adoption. This was the only 
mode. 

2. This adoption supposes that he is entirely cut off 
from the old family, having no longer any legal relation 
to or connection with it. 

3. That he is received into the new family, to 
be entirely under the rule and government of his 
adopter ; to be employed as he shall choose to employ 
him; and to be entirely at his disposal, in body, soul, 
and spirit. 

4. That as by this transaction he becomes an heir in 
the new family, so he is to enjoy those privileges whi-le 
he acts according to the law in that case provided ; and 
to the rules and constitution of the father's house. 

5. That his old consanguinity is now changed : 
that he is considered of the same blood with the new 
family ; standing no longer in any filial relationship to 
any other. 

6. That he takes the very name of his adopting 
father, and is to be in every respect conformed to that 
family. 

To apply these more particularly : — 

1. Man, having sinned against God, ceased to be his 
son ; for, in order to constitute filiation, it is essential 
that the child share the same nature with the father. 
As God's nature is holy, pure, and perfect, when man 

7 



146 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY REGENERATION. 

sinned he lost his conformity to this nature ; he lost the 
image of God in which he was created, and became 
unholy, impure, and imperfect. 

2. To restore him, the way of adoption only was left ; 
and that could not have taken place had not a previous 
adoption taken place, namely, the adoption of human 
nature by Jesus Christ. 

3. This adoption, therefore, supposes, and absolutely 
requires, that he be cut off from the old stock, and 
grafted into the new ; leaving behind him all his sins, 
sinful habits, sinful companions, and sinful dispositions ; 
being no longer of his old father the devil, nor in any 
respect doing his lusts, performing his will, or asso- 
ciating with his followers ; and that, as the old consan- 
guinity is changed, he now stands in relation only to 
God, holy angels, and holy men ; and that he is bound 
to maintain, in every respect, the honour, dignity, and 
respect of the divine family into which he is adopted. 

4. In being adopted by God he is no longer his own, 
he is God's right ; body, soul, and spirit belong to his 
heavenly Father. He is ever to feel himself absolutely 
at the disposal of God ; and is bound, if he would enjoy 
the privileges of the family, to take God's word for the 
rule of his life, and God's Spirit for the regulator of his 
heart and affections. 

5. And this obedience to the will of -the Father, and 
conformity to the Ruler of the family, are founded on 
the state of salvation into which he is brought, and the 
ineffable privileges to which he has now a right — he is 
an heir of God, and a joint heir with Christ Jesus. 

6. That, as by this adoption he acquires a new nature, 
so he has a new name — he is called after God ; a son of 
God, a child of God, an heir of God. But, properly, the 
family name is sairft, all the adopted children are called 
to be saints ; for holiness becomes God's house and 
family for ever. Where there is no saintship, there is 
no adoption, and consequently no heirship, and no in- 
heritance. 

X.— REGENERATION. 

The soul must be regenerated, all guilt must be purged 
away, and the heart must be cleansed. " But we have 
been regenerated, for we have been duly baptized." 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY REGENERATION. 147 

Baptism is the sign of regeneration, but it is not the 
thing; it is the " outward and visible sign of an inward 
and spiritual grace." You must be born of water and 
of the Spirit. Water is the emblem of the spiritual 
washing, but it is not the washing itself; " that which 
is born of the flesh is flesh ; and that which is born of 
the Spirit is spirit," is holy, pure, and heavenly. If 
your water baptism had been spiritual regeneration, you 
would have a heart cleansed from all unrighteousness, 
free from pride, wrath, evil desires, bad tempers, &c. 
But you who depend upon this circumcision of the flesh, 
have not this ; and you know you never had it. There- 
fore you want the blood that atones and purifies from all 
unrighteousness. Your having the reformers for your 
fathers, — baptism for the seal of your covenant, — your 
attendance on church and sacrament for the foundation 
of your hope of glory, can raise you no higher than 
Abraham as their father, circumcision as the seal of their 
covenant, sacrifices and ceremonies, carefully offered 
and performed, as the foundation of their hope of the 
continuance of the divine favour, did the ancient Jews. 
On these things they depended ; on such things you 
depend. 

So deep is the stain, so radicated the habits of sin- 
ning, so strong the propensity to do what is evil ; that 
nothing less than the power by which the soul was 
created, can conquer these habits, eradicate these vices, 
and cause such a leper to change his spots, and such an 
Ethiop his hue. The whole change which the soul un- 
dergoes in its conversion, is the effect of a divine energy 
within. This the gospel promises, when it promises to 
send forth the Holy Spirit. This mighty Spirit is given 
to enlighten, convince, strengthen, quicken, and save ; 
and the change which is effected in the sinner's soul, in 
his habits, and in his life, is such as no natural cause can 
produce; such as no art of man can effect; and such 
as no religious institutions, connected with the most 
serious and pointed moral advices, can ever bring about. 
It is wholly God's work ; and he performs it neither by 
might nor power, but by his own Spirit. 

The soul of man has been perverted — turned from 
God to sin and death. It is to be converted — turned 
from sin and death to God and life eternal. It has fallen 



148 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY REGENERATION. 

into sin, misery, and ruin ; and is to be restored to holi- 
ness, happiness, and endless salvation. The law, received 
as coming from himself, and under the influence of his 
own Spirit, turns the soul back (shows the method of 
reconciliation) to God ; and how it is to be restored from 
its ruined state, built up as at the beginning, and made a 
habitation of God through the Spirit. 

Conversion is the turning or total change of a sinner 
from his sins to God. Conversion is often confounded 
with regeneration and holiness, but it properly means the 
effect produced by the first influence of the grace and 
light of God upon the heart, by which an idolater em- 
braces the true God, a Jew the doctrine of Christ, and a 
sinner turns from his sins, and seeks the salvation of his 
soul in every means of grace. 

Unless a man be born again — born from above ; born 
not only of water, but of the Holy Ghost, — he cannot 
see the kingdom of God. These may appear hard say- 
ings, and those who are little in the habit of considering 
spiritual things may exclaim, " It is enthusiasm ! Who 
can bear it? Such things cannot possibly be." To such 
persons I can only say, " God hath spoken." This is 
sufficient for those who credit his being and his Bible. 
He, by whose almighty power Sarah had strength to 
conceive and bear a son in her old age, and by whose 
miraculous interference a virgin conceived, and the man 
Christ Jesus was born of her, can, by the same power, 
transform the sinful soul, and cause it to bear the 
image of the heavenly as it has borne the image of the 
earthly. 

The order of the great work of salvation is— 1. Con- 
viction of sin : 2. Contrition for sin: 3. Faith in the 
Lord Jesus Christ as having been delivered for our 
offences, and risen for our justification : 4. Justification 
or pardon of all past sin, through faith in his blood, 
accompanied, ordinarily, with the testimony of his Spirit 
in our hearts, that our sins are forgiven us : 5. Sancti- 
fxcation or holiness, which is progressive, as a growing 
up into Jesus Christ, our living Head, in all things ; and 
may be instantaneous, as God can, and often does, empty 
the soul of all sin in a moment, in the twinkling of an 
eye ; and then, having sowed in the seeds of right- 
eousness, they have a free and unmolested vegetation • 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 149 

6. Perseverance in the state of sanctification ; believing-, 
hoping, watching, working, in order to stand in this 
state of salvation, receiving hourly a deeper impression 
of the seal of God : 7. Glorification is the result ; for 
he who lives faithful unto death, shall obtain the crown 
of life. Without conviction of sin, no contrition ; with- 
out contrition, no faith that justifies ; without faith, no 
justification, no sanctification ; without sanctification, 
no glorification. 

There is every reason to believe, and genuine expe- 
rience in divine things confirms it, that in the act of 
justification, when the Spirit of God, the Spirit of holi- 
ness, is given to bear witness with our spirits that we 
are the children of God ; all the outlines of the divine 
image are drawn upon the soul : and it is the work of the 
Holy Spirit, in our sanctification, to touch off, and fill up, 
all those outlines, till every feature of the divine like 
ness is filled up and perfected. 

XL— THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

The Witness of the Spirit. — As every pious soul 
that believed in the coming Messiah, through the me- 
dium of the sacrifices offered up under the law, was 
made a partaker of the merit of his death, so every 
pious soul that believes in Christ crucified is made a 
partaker of the Holy Spirit. It is by this Spirit that 
sin is made known, and by it the blood of the covenant 
is applied ; and, indeed, without this the want of salva- 
tion cannot be discovered, nor the value of the blood 
of the covenant duly estimated. 

From the foundation of the church of God it was 
ever believed by his followers that there were certain 
infallible tokens by which he discovered to genuine 
believers his acceptance of them and of their services. 
This was sometimes done by a fire from heaven con- 
suming the sacrifice ; sometimes by an oracular com- 
munication to the priest or prophet ; and at other times, 
according to the Jewish account, by changing the fillet 
or cloth on the head of the scape goat from scarlet to 
white : but most commonly, and especially under the 
gospel dispensation, he gives this assurance to true be- 
lievers by the testimony of his Spirit in their consciences 



150 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

that he has forgiven their iniquities, transgressions, and 
sins for His sake who has carried their griefs and 
borne their sorrows. 

"The Spirit itself " — that same Spirit, the Spirit of 
adoption ; that is, the Spirit who witnesses this adop- 
tion ; which can be no other than the Holy Ghost him- 
self, and certainly cannot mean any disposition or affec- 
tion of mind which the adopted person may feel ; for 
such a disposition must arise from a knowledge of this 
adoption, and the knowledge of this adoption cannot be 
known by any human or earthly means ; it must come 
from God himself. " With our spirit" — in our under- 
standing, the place or recipient of light and information ; 
and the place or faculty to which such information can 
properly be brought. This is done that we may have 
the highest possible evidence of the work which God 
has wrought. As the window is the proper medium to 
let the light of the sun into our apartments, so the un- 
derstanding is the proper medium of conveying the 
Spirit's influence to the soul. We therefore have the 
utmost evidence of the fact of our adoption which we 
can possibly have : we have the word and Spirit of God, 
and the word sealed on our spirit by the Spirit, of God. 
And this is not a momentary influx: if we take care to 
walk with God, and not grieve the Holy Spirit, we 
shall have an abiding testimony; and while we continue 
faithful to our adopting Father, the Spirit that wit- 
nesses that adoption will continue to witness it ; and 
hereby we shall know that we are of God by the Spirit 
which he giveth us. 

" The same Spirit," viz., the Spirit that witnesses of 
our adoption and sonship, makes intercession for us. 
Surely, if the apostle had designed to teach us that he 
meant our own sense and understanding by the Spirit, 
he never could have spoken in a manner in which plain 
common sense was never likely to comprehend his 
meaning. Besides, how can it be said that our own 
spirit, our filial disposition, bears witness with our own 
spirit ; that our own spirit helps the infirmities of our 
own spirit ; that our own spirit teaches our own spirit 
that of which it is ignorant; and that our own spirit 
maketh intercession for our spirit, with groanings un- 
utterable ? This would have been both incongrouous 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 151 

and absurd. We must, therefore, understand these 
places of that help and influence which the followers of 
God receive from the Holy Ghost; and consequently 
of the fulfilment of the various promises relative to this 
point which our Lord made to his disciples. 

This Holy Spirit is sent forth to witness with their 
spirit. He is to bear his testimony where it is abso- 
lutely necessary, — where it can be properly discovered, 
— where it can be fully understood, and where it cannot 
be mistaken : — viz., in their hearts ; or, as St. Paul 
says, " the Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit:" 
the Spirit of God with the spirit of man — spirit with 
spirit — intelligence with intelligence ; the testimony 
given and received by the same kind of agency : a 
spiritual agent in a spiritual substance. 

This witness is not borne in their passions, nor in 
impressions made upon their imagination ; for this must 
be from its very nature doubtful and evanescent ; but it 
is borne in their understanding, not by a transitory 
manifestation, but continually — unless a man by sins of 
omission or commission grieve that divine Spirit, and 
cause him to withdraw his testimony — which is the 
same thing as the divine approbation. And God cannot 
continue to the soul a sense of his approbation when 
it has departed from the holy commandment that was 
given to it : bu£ even in this case, the man may return 
by repentance and faith to God, through Christ, when 
pardon will be granted and the witness restored. 

Wherever this Spirit comes, it bears a testimony to 
itself. It shows that it is the divine Spirit by its own 
light; and he who receives it is perfectly satisfied of 
this. It brings a light, a power, and conviction, more 
full, more clear, and more convincing to the under- 
standing and judgment, than they ever had, or ever can 
have, of any circumstance or fact brought before the 
intellect. The man knows that it is the divine Spirit, 
and he knows and feels that it bears testimony to the 
state of grace in which he stands. 

So convincing and satisfactory is this testimony, that a 
man receiving it is enabled to call God his Father with 
the utmost filial confidence. Surprised and convinced 
he cries out at once, "Abba, Father! my Father! my 
Father !" having as full a consciousness that he is a 



152 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

child of God, as the most tenderly beloved child has of 
his filiation to his natural parent. He has the full assu- 
rance of faith ; the meridian evidence that puts all doubts 
to flight. 

And this, as was observed above, continues ; for it is 
the very voice of the indwelling Spirit: for " crying" is 
not the only participle of the present tense denoting the 
continuation of the action ; but, being neuter, it agrees 
with the Spirit of his Son ; so it is the divine Spirit which 
continues to cry, " Abba, Father !" in the heart of the true 
believer. And it is ever worthy to be remarked that when 
a man has been unfaithful to the grace given, or has fallen 
into any kind of sin, he has no power to utter this cry. The 
Spirit is grieved and has departed, and the cry is lost ! 
No power of the man's reason, fancy, or imagination, 
can restore this cry. Were he to utter the words with 
his lips his heart would disown them. But, on the 
other hand, while he continues faithful the witness is 
continued ; the light and conviction, and the cry, are 
maintained. It is the glory of this grace that no man 
can command this cry ; and none can assume it. Where 
it is, it is the faithful and true witness : where it is not, 
all is uncertainty and doubt. 

The persons mentioned, Rom. viii, 15, 16, had the 
strongest evidence of the excellence of the state in which 
they stood; they knew that they were thus adopted; 
and they knew this by the Spirit of God, which was 
given them on their adoption ; and, let me say, they 
could know it by no other means. The Father who 
had adopted them could be seen by no mortal eye ; and 
the transaction, being of a purely spiritual nature, and 
transacted in heaven, can be known only by God's 
supernatural testimony of it upon earth. It is a matter 
of such solemn importance to every Christian soul, that 
God in his mercy has been pleased not to leave it to 
conjecture, assumption, or inductive reasoning ; but 
attests it by his own Spirit in the soul of the person 
whom he adopts through Christ Jesus. It is the grand 
and most observable case in which the intercourse is 
kept up between heaven and earth ; and the genuine 
believer in Christ Jesus is not left to the quibbles or 
casuistry of polemic divines or critics, but receives the 
thing and the testimony of it immediately from God 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 153 

himself. And were not the testimony of the state thus 
given, no man could possibly have any assurance of his 
salvation which could beget confidence and love. If to 
any man his acceptance with God be hypothetical, then 
his confidence must be so too. His love to God mus* 
be hypothetical, his gratitude hypothetical, and his 
obedience also. If God had forgiven me my sins then 
I should love him, and I should be grateful, and I should 
testify this gratitude by obedience. But who does not 
see that these must necessarily depend on the " if" in 
the first case? All this uncertainty, and the perplexi- 
ties necessarily resulting from it, God has precluded by 
sending the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, by which 
we cry, "Abba, Father;" and thus our adoption into 
the heavenly family is testified and ascertained to us in 
the only way in which it can possibly be done, by the 
direct influence of the Spirit of God. Remove this 
from Christianity, and it is a dead letter. 

The fact to be witnessed is beyond the knowledge of 
man : no human power or cunning can acquire it : if 
obtained at all, it must come from above. In this, hu- 
man wit and ingenuity can do nothing. It is to tell us 
that we are reconciled to God ; that our sins are blotted 
out ; that we are adopted into the family of heaven. 
The apostle tells us that this is witnessed by the Spirit 
of God. God alone can tell whom he has accepted ; 
whose sins he has blotted out*, whom he has put among 
his children : this he makes known by his Spirit in our 
spirit ; so that we have (not by induction or inference) 
a thorough conviction and mental feeling, that we are 
his children. 

There is as great a difference between this and know- 
ledge gained by logical argument, as there is between 
hypothesis and experiment. Hypothesis states that a 
thing may be so : experience alone proves the hypothe- 
sis to be true or false. By the first, we think the thing 
to be possible or likely ; by the latter we know, experi- 
ence, or prove, by practical trial, that the matter is true, 
or is false, as the case may be. 

I should never have looked for the " witness of the 
Spirit," had I not found numerous scriptures which 
most positively assert it, or hold it out by necessary 
7* 



154 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

induction ; and had I not found that all the truly godly 
of every sect and party possessed the blessing — a bless- 
ing which is the common birthright of all the sons and 
daughters of God. Wherever I went among deeply 
religious people, I found this blessing. All who had 
turned from unrighteousness to the living God, and 
sought redemption by faith in the blood of the cross, 
exulted in this grace. It was never looked on by them 
as a privilege with which some peculiarly favoured souls 
were blessed : it was known from Scripture and expe- 
rience to be the common lot of the people of God. It 
was not persons of a peculiar temperament who pos- 
sessed it ; all the truly religious had it, whether in their 
natural dispositions sanguine, melancholy, or mixed. I 
met with it everywhere, and met with it among the most 
simple and illiterate, as well as among those who had 
every advantage which high cultivation and deep learn- 
ing could bestow. Perhaps I might, with the strictest 
truth, say that during the forty years I have been in 
the ministry, I have met with at least forty thousand who 
have had a clear and full evidence that God, for Christ's 
sake, had forgiven their sins, the Spirit himself bearing 
witness with their spirit that they were the sons and 
daughters of God. 

We never confound the knowledge of salvation by the 
remission of sins with final perseverance. This doc- 
trine has nothing to do with a future possession; the 
truly believing soul has now the witness in himself; and 
his retaining it depends on his faithfulness to the light 
and grace received. If he give way to any known sin, 
he loses this witness, and must come to God through 
Christ as he came at first, in order to get the guilt of 
the transgression pardoned, and the light of God's coun- 
tenance restored. For the justification which any soul 
receives is not in reference to his future pardon of sin, 
since God declares his righteousness " for the remission 
of sins which are past." And no man can retain his 
eviJence of his acceptance with God longer than he has 
that faith which worketh by love. The present is a 
state of probation : in such a state a man may rise, fall, 
or recover ; with this, the doctrine of the " witness of 
the Spirit" has nothing to do. When a man is justified 
all his past sins are forgiven hin? ; but this grace reaches 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 155 

not on to any sin that may be committed in any follow- 
ing 1 moment. 

But it may be objected : " The human mind easily 
gets under the dominion of superstition and imaginat- 
ion ; and then a variety of feelings, apparently divine, 
may be accounted for on natural principles." To this I 
answer, 1. Superstition is never known to produce 
settled peace and happiness ; it is generally the parent 
of gloomy apprehensions and irrational fears : but surely 
the man who has broken the laws of his Maker, and 
lived in open rebellion against him, cannot be supposed 
to be under the influence of superstition, when he is 
apprehensive of the wrath of God, and fears to fall into 
the bitter pains of an eternal death. Such fears are as 
rational as they are Scriptural ; and the broken and con- 
trite heart is ever considered, through the whole oracles 
of God, as essentially necessary to the finding redemp- 
tion in Christ. Therefore such fears, feelings, and 
apprehensions are not the offspring of a gloomy super- 
stition ; but the fruit and evidence of a genuine Scriptural 
repentance. 2. Imagination cannot long support a 
mental imposture. To persuade the soul that it is 
passed from darkness to light ; that it is in the favour 
of God ; that it is an heir of glory, &c, will require 
strong- excitement indeed; and the stronger the exciting 
cause, or stimulus, the sooner the excitability and its 
effects will be exhausted. A person may imagine him- 
self for a moment to be a king, or to be a child of God ; 
but that revery, where there is no radical derangement 
of mind, must be transient. The person must soon 
awake, and come to himself. 3. But it is impossible ihat 
imagination can have any thing to do in this case, any 
farther than any other faculty of the mind, in natural 
operation ; for the person must walk as he is directed 
by the word of God, abhorring evil, and cleaving to that 
which is good : and the sense of God's approbation in 
his conscience lasts no longer than he acts under the 
spirit of obedience ; God continuing the evidence of his 
approbation to his conscience while he walks in new- 
ness of life. Has imagination ever produced a life of 
piety? Now multitudes are found who have had this 
testimony uninterruptedly for many years together. 
Could imagination produce this ? If so, it is a unique 



156 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

case ; for there is none other in which an excitement of 
the imagination has sustained the impression with any 
such permanence. And all the operations of this faculty 
prove that to an effect of this kind it is wholly inade- 
quate. If, then, it can sustain impressions in spiritual 
matters for years together, this must be totally preter- 
natural, and the effect of a miraculous operation ; and 
this miracle must be resorted to, to explain away a doc- 
trine which some men, because they themselves do not 
experience it, deny that any others can. 

But might I, without offence, speak a word concern- 
ing myself? Those that know me know that I am no 
enthusiast ; that I have given no evidence of a strong 
imagination ; that I am far from being the subject of 
sudden hopes or fears ; that it requires strong reasons 
and clear argumentation to convince me of the truth of 
any proposition not previously known. Now I do pro- 
fess to have received, through God's eternal mercy, a 
clear evidence of my acceptance with God ; and it was 
given me after a sore night of spiritual affliction, and 
precisely in that way in which the Scriptures promise 
this blessing. It has also been accompanied with power 
over sin ; and I hold it through the same mercy, as ex- 
plicitly, as clearly, and as satisfactorily, as ever. No 
work of imagination could have ever produced or main- 
tained any feeling like this. I am, therefore, safe in 
affirming, for all these reasons, that we have neither 
misunderstood nor misapplied the scriptures in question. 

As to the doctrine of assurance, (or the knowledge 
of our salvation by the remission of sins ; or, in other 
words, that a man who is justified by faith in Christ 
Jesus knows that he is so, the Spirit bearing witness 
with his spirit that he is a child of God,) against which 
such a terrible outcry has been made, I would beg leave 
to ask, What is Christianity without it ? A mere sys- 
tem of ethics ; an authentic history ; a dead letter. It 
is by the operations of the Holy Spirit in the souls of 
believers, that the connection is kept up between heaven 
and earth. The grand principle of the Christian reli- 
gion is to reconcile men to God by Christ Jesus ; to 
bring them from a state of wrath to reconciliation and 
favour with God ; to break the power, cancel the guilt, 
and destroy the very being of sin ; for Christ was 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 157 

manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil. 
And can this be done in any human soul, and it know 
nothing- about it, except by inference and conjecture ? 
Miserable state of Christianity indeed, where no man 
knows that he is born of God ! This assurance of God's 
love is the birthright and common privilege of all his 
children. It is a general experience among truly reli- 
gious people : they take rest, rise up, work, and live 
under its influence. By it they are carried comfortably 
through all the ills of life, bring forth the fruits of the 
Spirit, triumph in redeeming orrace, and die exulting in 
Him whom they know and feel to be the God of their 
salvation. X or is this confined to superannuated women, 
as Mr. Southey charitably hopes Mrs. Wesley was, 
when she professed to receive the knowledge of salva- 
tion by the remission of sins. Men also as learned as 
Mr. Badcock, as philosophical as Mr. Southey, as deepl} 
read in men and things as Bishop Lavington, and as 
sound divines at least as the rector of Manaccan, have 
exulted in the same testimony, walked in all good con- 
science before God, illustrated the doctrine by a suitable 
deportment, and died full of joyful anticipation of eter- 
nal glory ! Alas, what a dismal tale do these men tell, 
who not only strive to argue against the doctrine, but 
endeavour to turn it into ridicule ! They tell us that 
they are not reconciled to God ! 

No salvation by induction or inference can satisfy a 
guilty conscience, which feels the wrath of God abiding 
on it ; nothing but the witness of God's Spirit in our 
own spirit, that we are the children of God, can appease 
the terrors of an awakened sinner, give rest to a trou- 
bled heart, or be a foundation on which the soul can 
build a rational and Scriptural hope of eternal life. 

The Holy Spirit in the soul of a believer is God's 
seal, set on his heart to testify that he is God's pro- 
perty, and that he should be wholly employed in God's 
service. 

As Christ is represented as the ambassador of the 
Father, so the Holy Spirit is represented as the ambassa- 
dor of the Son, coming vested with his authority, as the 
interpreter and executor of his will. 

We know by the Spirit which he hath given us that 
we dwell in God, and God in us. It was not bv con- 



158 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

jecture or inference that Christians of old knew they 
were in the favour of God ; it was by the testimony of 
God's own Spirit in their hearts ; and this Spirit was 
not given in a transient manner, but was constant and 
abiding, while they continued under the influence of that 
faith which worketh by love. Every good man is a 
temple of the Holy Ghost ; and wherever He is, He is 
both light and power. By his power he works ; by his 
light he makes both himself and his work known. Peace 
of conscience and joy in the Holy Ghost must proceed 
from the indwelling of that Holy Spirit ; and those who 
have these blessings must know that they have them, 
for we cannot have heavenly peace and heavenly joy 
without knowing that we have them. But this Spirit in 
the soul of a believer is not only manifest by its effects, 
but it bears its own witness to its own indwelling. So 
that a man hot only knows that he has the Spirit from 
the fruits of the Spirit, but he knows that he has it from 
its own direct witness. It may be said, " How can 
these things be ?" And it may be answered, " By the 
power, light, and mercy of God." But that such things 
are, the Scriptures uniformly attest ; and the experience 
of the whole genuine church of Christ, and of every 
truly converted soul, sufficiently proves. " As the wind 
bloweth where it listeth," and we " Cannot tell whence 
it cometh and whither it goeth, so is every one that is 
born of the Spirit :" the thing is certain, and fully 
known by its effects ; but how this testimony is given 
and confirmed is inexplicable. Every good man feels it, 
and knows he is of God by the Spirit God has given him. 
We may witness in the experience of multitudes of 
simple people, who have been by the preaching of the 
gospel converted from the error of their ways, such a 
strength of testimony in favour of the work of God in 
the heart, and his effectual teaching in the mind, as is 
calculated to still, or reduce to silence, every thing but 
bigotry and prejudice, neither of which has either eyes 
or ears. This teaching and these changing or convert- 
ing influences come from God. They are not acquired 
by human learning : and those who put this in the place 
of the divine teaching never grow wise to salvation. 
To enter into the kingdom of heaven a man must become 
as a little child. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 159 

There is nothing more usual among even the best 
educated and enlightened of the members of the Me- 
thodist society, than a distinct knowledge of the time, 
place, and circumstances, when and where, and in which 
way, they were deeply convinced of sin, and afterward 
had a clear sense of God's mercy to their souls, in for- 
giving their sins, and giving them the witness in them- 
selves that they were born of God. 

The Methodists, in proof of the doctrine of the wit- 
ness of the Spirit, refer to no man, not to Mr. John 
Wesley himself : they appeal to none — they appeal to 
the Bible, where this doctrine stands as inexpugnable as 
the pillars of heaven. Nor do they need solitary in- 
stances as facts, to prove that on this point they have 
not mistaken the Bible, while they, by the mercy of 
God, have thousands of testimonies every year of its 
truth ; and they know it to be the common birthright 
of all the sons and daughters of God. Without it the 
whole life of faith would be hypothetical. And if a man 
have not the consolations of the Holy Spirit, and a 
Scriptural and satisfactory evidence of his own interest 
in Christ, and of his title through hifn to the kingdom 
of heaven, the Koran, for aught he knows, may be as 
true as the Bible. No man can inherit unless he be a 
son : " For if sons, then heirs ;" and to them that are 
sons " God sends the Spirit of his Son into their hearts, 
crying, Abba, Father." These are the true sayings of 
God, and all his people know them. 

Those who feel little or none of the work of God in 
their own hearts are not willing to allow that he works 
in others. Many deny the influences of God's Spirit, 
merely because they never felt them. This is to make 
any man's experience the rule by which the whole word 
of God is to be interpreted : and, consequently, to leave 
no more divinity in the Bible than is found in the heart 
of him who professes to explain it. 

When moral effects, the purest, the most distinguished, 
and the most beneficial to society are attributed to na- 
tural causes, human passions, and the inquietudes of 
vanity, and not to the Author of all good, the Father of 
lights, then we may safely assert that the person who 
so views him is one of those unwise men of whom the 
psalmist speaks. He excludes God from hi's own 



160 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

peculiar work ; gives to nature what belongs to grace ; to 
human passions what belongs to the divine Spirit ; and 
to secondary causes what must necessarily spring from 
the First Cause of all things. 

Were not the subject too grave, it would be sufficient 
to excite something more than a smile, to see men both 
of abilities and learning, in their discussion of spiritual 
subjects which they have never thoroughly examined, 
because they have never experimentally felt them, labour 
to account for all the phenomena of repentance, faith, 
and holiness, by excluding the Spirit of God from his 
own proper work ; and to the discredit of their under- 
standing, and the dishonour of religion and sound phi- 
losophy, search for the principle that produces love to 
God and all mankind, with all the fruits of a holy life, 
in some of the worst passions of the human heart. 

The Holy Ghost so satisfies the souls that receive it, 
that they thirst no more for earthly good : it purines 
also from all spiritual defilement, on which account it 
is emphatically styled the Holy Spirit ; and it makes 
those who receive it fruitful in every good word and 
work. 

To produce inward spirituality is the province of the 
Spirit of God, and of him alone ; therefore he is repre- 
sented under the similitude of fire, because he is to 
illuminate and invigorate the soul, penetrate every 
part, and assimilate the whole to the image of the God 
of glory. 

As truly as the living God dwelt in the Mosaic 
tabernacle and in the temple of Solomon, so truly does 
the Holy Ghost dwell in the souls of genuine Christians. 

No man who has not divine assistance can either find 
the way to heaven, or walk in it when found. As 
Christ, by his sacrificial offering, has opened the kingdom 
of God to all believers ; and, as Mediator, transacts the 
concerns of their kingdom before the throne, so the 
Spirit of God is the great Agent here below, to enlighten, 
quicken, strengthen, and guide the true disciples of 
Christ ; and all that are born of this Spirit are led and 
guided by it ; and none can pretend to be the children 
of God who are not thus guided. 

To purify the soul, to refine and sublime all the pas 
sions and appetites, the operation of the Holy Spirit is 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 161 

promised. Spirit only can act successfully on spirit ; 
and this Spirit is called the Holy Spirit, not only because 
it is holy in itself, but because it is the Author of holi- 
ness to them who receive it. Hence it is represented 
under the notion of fire, because it enlightens, warms, 
refines, and purifies. It is the property of fire either to 
consume and destroy, or assimilate every thing to itself 
with which it is brought into contact. It pervades all 
things, transfuses itself through every part, destroys or 
decomposes whatever cannot withstand its action ; and 
communicates its own essential properties to whatever 
abides its test. Thus the Holy Spirit, the "Spirit of 
burning," destroys the pollution of the heart, and makes 
pure and divine all its powers and faculties. 

" The communion of the Holy Ghost be with you all." 
May that Holy Spirit, that divine and eternal energy 
which proceeds from the Father and the Son ; that hea- 
venly fire that gives light and life, that purifies and 
refines, sublimes and exalts, comforts and invigorates, 
make you all partakers with himself. This points out 
the astonishing privileges of true believers : they have 
communion with God's Spirit ; share in all his gifts and 
graces; walk in his light; through him they have the 
fullest confidence that they are of God, that he is their 
Father and Friend, and has blotted out all their iniqui- 
ties : this they know by the Spirit which he has given 
them. And is it possible that a man shall be a partaker 
with the Holy Ghost, and not know it ! that he shall 
be full of light and love, and not know it ! that he shall 
have the Spirit of adoption by which he can cry, " Abba, 
Father !" and yet know nothing of his relationship to 
God but by inference from indirect proofs ? in a word, 
that he shall have the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost 
with him, and all the while know nothing certain of the 
grace, as to his portion in it ; feel nothing warming from 
the love, a& to its part in him ; and nothing energetic 
from the communion, as to his participation in the gifts 
and graces of this divine energy? This is all as absurd 
as it is impossible. Every genuine Christian, who 
maintains a close walk with God, may have as full an 
evidence of his acceptance with God as he has of his 
own existence. And the doctrine that explains away 



162 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

this privilege, or softens it down to nothing, by making 
the most gracious and safe state consistent with innu- 
merable doubts and fears, and general uncertainty, is not 
of God. It is a spurious gospel, which, under the show 
of a voluntary humility, not only lowers, but almost 
annihilates the standard of Christianity. 

One communication of this Spirit always makes way 
and disposes for another. Neither apostle nor private 
Christian can subsist in the divine life without frequent 
influences from on high. 

When reconciled to God, and thus brought nigh by 
the blood of Christ, we receive the gift of the Holy 
Spirit, which is the fruit of the death, resurrection, and 
ascension of our Lord. And this Spirit, which is 
emphatically called the Holy Spirit, because he is not 
only infinitely holy in his own nature, but his grand 
office is to make the children of men holy, is given to 
true believers, not only to " testify with their spirits 
that they are the children of God," but also to purify 
their hearts ; and thus he transfuses through their souls 
his own holiness and purity ; so that the image of God 
in which they were created, and which by transgression 
they had lost, is now restored ; and they are, by this 
holiness, prepared for the enjoyment of eternal blessed- 
ness, in perfect union with Him who is the Father and 
God of glory, and the Fountain of holiness. 

God promised his Holy Spirit to sanctify and cleanse 
the heart, so as utterly to destroy all pride, anger, self- 
will, peevishness, hatred, malice, and every thing con- 
trary to his own holiness. 

The very Spirit which is given them, on their believing 
in Christ Jesus, is the Spirit of holiness ; and they can 
retain this spirit no longer than they live in the spirit of 
obedience. 

It is the office of the Holy Spirit to witness to the 
conscience of man the covenant and its conditions, to 
apply the blood of sprinkling, and to take the things that 
are Christ's and show them to men ; and it is his pro- 
vince to witness to the heart of the believing penitent, 
that by this shed blood his " conscience is purged from 
dead works to serve the living God." He is also the 
sanctifying Spirit ; the Spirit of judgment, and the 
Spirit of burning ; and, as such, he condemns to utter 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 163 

destruction the whole of the carnal mind, and purines \ 
the very thoughts of the heart by his inspiration, \ 
enabling the true believer perfectly to love God and 
worthily to magnify his holy name. And this same 
Spirit dwelling in the soul of a believer seals him an 
heir of eternal glory. 

The Holy Spirit is called an advocate, because he 
transacts the cause of God and Christ with us, explains 
to us the nature and importance of the great atonement, 
shows the necessity of it, counsels us to receive it, 
instructs us how to lay hold on it, vindicates our claim 
to it, and makes intercessions in us with unutterable 
groanings. 

Our Lord makes intercession for us by negotiating 
and managing, as our friend and agent, all the affairs 
pertaining to our salvation. And the Spirit of God 
maketh intercession for the saints, not by supplication 
to God in their behalf, but by directing and qualifying 
their supplications in a proper manner, by his agency 
and influence upon their hearts; which, according to the 
gospel scheme, is the peculiar work and office of the 
Holy Spirit. So that God, whose is the Spirit, and 
who is acquainted with the mind of the Spirit, knows 
what he means when he leads the saints to express 
themselves in words, desires, groans, sighs, or tears ; in 
each God reads the language of the Holy Ghost, and 
prepares the answer according to the request. 

This Spirit is not sent to stocks, stones, or machines, 
but to human beings endued with rational souls ; there- 
fore, it is not to work on them with that irresistible 
energy which it must exert on inert matter, in order to 
conquer the vis inertice, or disposition to abide eternally 
in a motionless state, which is the state of all inanimate 
beings ; but it works upon understanding, will, judg- 
ment, conscience, &c, in order to enlighten, convince, 
and persuade. If, after all, the understanding, the eye 
of the mind, refuses to behold the light ; the will deter- 
mines to remain obstinate ; the judgment purposes to 
draw false inferences ; and the conscience hardens itself 
against every check and remonstrance; (and all this is 
possible to a rational soul, which must be dealt with in 
a rational way ;) then the Spirit of God, being thus re- 
sisted, is grieved, and the sinner is left to reap the fruit 



164 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

of his doings. To force the man to see, feel, repent, 
believe, and be saved, would be to alter the essential 
principles of his creation and the nature of mind, and 
reduce him into the state of a machine, the vis inertia 
of which was to be overcome and conducted by a cer- 
tain quantum of physical force, superior to that resist- 
ance which would be the natural effect of the certain 
quantum of the vis inertice possessed by the subject on 
and by which this agent was to operate. Now man 
cannot be operated on in this way, because it is con- 
trary to the laws of his creation and nature ; nor can 
the Holy Ghost work on that as a machine which him- 
self has made a free agent. Man, therefore, may, and 
generally does, resist the Holy Ghost ; and the whole 
revelation of God bears unequivocal testimony to this 
most dreadful possibility and most awful truth. It is 
trifling with the sacred text to say that resisting the 
Holy Ghost here means " resisting the laws of Moses, 
the exhortations, threatenings, and promises of the pro- 
phets," &c. These, it is true, the uncircumcised ear 
may resist ; but the uncircumcised heart is that alone 
to which the Spirit that gave the laws, exhortations, 
promises, &c, speaks ; and, as matter resists matter, so 
spirit resists spirit. These were not only uncircum- 
cised in ear, but uncircumcised also in heart ; and, 
therefore, they resisted the Holy Ghost, not only in his 
declarations and institutions, but also in his actual 
energetic operations upon their minds. 

" Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God," by giving way 
to any wrong temper, unholy word, or unrighteous 
action. Even those who have already a measure of the 
light and life of God, both of which are not only brought 
in by the Holy Spirit, but maintained by his constant 
indwelling, may give way to sin, and so grieve this 
Holy Spirit that it shall withdraw both its light and 
presence ; and, in proportion as it withdraws, then 
hardness and darkness take place, and, what is still 
worse, a state of insensibility is the consequence ; for 
the darkness prevents the fallen state from being seen, 
and hardness prevents it from being felt. 

Lovk. — Love is a sovereign preference given to one 
abvoe all others, present or absent ; a concentration of 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 165 

all the thoughts and desires in a single object, which is 
preferred to all others. Now, apply this definition to 
the love which God requires of his creatures, and you 
will have the most correct view of the subject. Hence, 
it appears that by this love the soul cleaves to ? affec- 
tionately admires, and consequently rests in, God, 
supremely pleased and satisfied with him as its portion ; 
that it acts from him, as its Author ; for him, as its 
Master ; and to him, as its end ; and that by it all the 
powers and faculties of the mind are concentrated in 
the Lord of the universe ; that by it the whole man is 
willingly surrendered to the Most High ; and that, 
through it, an identity or sameness of spirit with the 
Lord is acquired, the person being made a partaker of 
the divine nature ; having the mind in him that was in 
Christ ; and thus dwelling in God, and God in him. 

He loves God with all his heart who loves nothing in 
comparison of him, and nothing but in reference to him; 
who is ready to give up, do, or suffer, any thing, in 
order to please and glorify him ; who has in his heart 
neither love nor hatred, hope nor fear, inclination nor 
aversion, desire nor delight, but as they relate to God, 
and are regulated by him. Such a love that Being who 
is infinitely perfect, good, wise, powerful, beneficent, 
and merciful, merits and requires from his intelligent 
creatures ; and in fulfilling this duty the soul finds its 
perfection and felicity ; for it rests in the Source of 
goodness, and is penetrated with incessant influences 
from Him who is the essence and centre of all that is 
amiable; for he is the God of all grace. 

He loves God with all his soul, with all his life, who 
is ready to give up his life for His sake ; who is ready 
to endure all sorts of torments, and to be deprived of 
all kinds of comforts, rather than dishonour God ; he 
who employs life, with all its comforts and conveniences, 
to glorify him in, by, and through all ; to whom life and 
death are nothing, but as they come from, and lead to 
God ; who labours to promote the cause of God and 
truth in the world, denying himself, taking up his cross 
daily; neither eating, drinking, sleeping, resting, la- 
bouring, toiling, but in reference to the glory of God, 
his own salvation, and that of the lost world. 

He loves God with all his mind, with all his intellect, 



166 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

or understanding, who applies himself only to know 
God and his holy will ; who receives with submission, 
gratitude, and pleasure, the sacred truths which he has 
revealed to mankind ; who studies neither art nor sci- 
ence, but as far as it is necessary for the service of God, 
and uses it at all times to promote his glory ; who forms 
no projects nor designs but in reference to God, and to 
the interests of mankind; who banishes, as much as 
possible, from his understanding and memory, every 
useless, foolish, and dangerous thought ; together with 
every idea which has any tendency to defile his soul, or 
turn it for a moment from the centre of eternal repose ; 
who uses all his abilities, both natural and acquired, to 
grow in the grace of God, and to perform his will in the 
most acceptable manner : in a word, he who sees God 
in all things, thinks of him at all times, having his mind 
continually fixed upon God ; acknowledges him in all 
his ways; who begins, continues, and ends all his 
thoughts, words, and works to the glory of his name ; 
continually planning, scheming, and devising how he 
may serve God and his generation more effectually ; his 
head, his intellect, going before ; his heart, his affec- 
tions, and desires, coming after. 

He loves God with all his strength who exerts all 
the powers and faculties of his body and soul in the 
service of God ; who, for the glory of his Maker, spares 
neither labour nor cost ; who sacrifices his body, his 
health, his time, his ease, for the honour of his divine 
Master ; who employs in his service all his goods, his 
talents, his power, his credit, authority, and influence ; 
doing what he does with a single eye, a loving heart, 
and with all his might; in whose conduct is ever seen 
the work of faith, patience of hope, and labour of love. 

O glorious state of him who has given God his whole 
heart, and in which God ever lives and rules ! Glorious 
state of blessedness upon earth, triumph of the grace of 
God over sin and Satan ! state of holiness and happi- 
ness far beyond this description, which comprises an 
ineffable union and communion between the ever blessed 
Trinity and the soul of man ! O God ! let thy work 
appear unto thy servants, and the work of our hands 
establish upon us ! The work of our hands establish 
thou it ! Amen. Amen. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— THE HOLY SPIRIT. 167 

This love is the spring of all our actions ; it is the 
motive of our obedience ; the principle through which we 
love God ; " we love him because he first loved us ;" 
and we love him w r ith a love worthy of himself, because 
it springs from him : it is his own ; and every flame that 
rises from this pure and vigorous fire must be pleasing 
in his sight : it consumes what is unholy ; refines every 
passion and appetite ; sublimes the whole, and assimi- 
lates all to itself. And we know that this is the love of 
God : it differs widely from all that is earthly and sen- 
sual. The Holy Ghost comes with it ; by his energy it 
is diffused and pervades every part ; and by his light 
we discover what it is, and know the state of grace in 
which we stand. Thus we are furnished to every good 
word and work ; have produced in us the mind that was 
in Christ ; are enabled to obey the pure law of our God 
in its spiritual sense, by loving him with all our heart, 
soul, mind, and strength, and our neighbour, every son 
of man, as ourselves. This is, or ought to be, the com- 
mon experience of every believer. 

The love of Christ is opposed to our enmity, and by 
it our hatred to God and goodness is overcome. Love 
counteracts the whole carnal mind, draws out the heart 
in affectionate attachment to God, and is the incentive 
to all obedience, as being the fulfilling of the law. Such 
a person is not obliged to derive the principle of his 
obedience from any thing outward : the moral law is 
before his eyes ; but the love of God, shed abroad in 
his heart, is the principle by which he obeys it. He 
performs nothing merely as a duty ; he has the law of 
God written in his heart, and this ever disposes him to 
do what is right in the sight of his Judge. If it were 
not even infallibly true that a life of sin must terminate 
in endless misery, yet he would abhor the way of the 
wicked. He has tried the path of disobedience, and 
found it the road to ruin : he now knows the way of 
righteousness, and finds it the path of peace and happi- 
ness. Satan, the enslaver of the world, he found to be 
a hard task master, during the long period in which 
he laboured under chains, in the house of his bondage. 
God, the Saviour of the world, he finds to be a benefi- 
cent Father, and his service perfect freedom. He de- 
lights in obedience ; it is the element in which his soul 
lives, prospers, and is happy. 



168 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

Love is properly the image of God in the soul ; for 
" God is love." By faith we receive from our Maker ; 
by hope we expect a future and eternal good ; but by 
love we resemble God ; and by it alone are we qualified 
to enjoy heaven, and be one with him throughout eter- 
nity. Faith and hope respect ourselves alone ; love 
takes in both God and man. Faith helps, and hope sus- 
tains us ; but love to God and man makes us obedient 
and useful. 

Love is the means of preserving all other graces ; in- 
deed, properly speaking, it includes them all ; and all 
receive their perfection from it. Love to God and 
man can never be dispensed with. It is essential to 
social and religious life ; without it no communion can 
be kept up with God ; nor can any man have a prepa- 
ration for eternal glory whose heart and soul are not 
deeply imbued with it. Without it there never was true 
religion, nor ever can be ; and it not only is necessary 
through life, but will exist throughout eternity. What 
were a state of blessedness if it did not comprehend love 
to God and to human spirits in the most exquisite, 
refined, and perfect degrees ? 

That man is no Christian who is solicitous for his 
own happiness alone, and who cares not how the world 
goes, so that himself be comfortable. How much good 
is omitted, how many evils caused, how many duties 
neglected, how many innocent persons deserted, how 
many good works destroyed, how many truths sup- 
pressed, and how many acts of injustice authorized, by 
those timorous forecasts of what may happen, and those 
faithless apprehensions concerning the future ! 

Where is our zeal for God ? Where the sounding of 
our bowels over the perishing nations who have not yet 
come under the yoke of the gospel? multitudes of 
whom are not under the yoke, because they have never 
heard of it; — and they have not heard of it, because 
they who enjoy the blessings of the gospel of Jesus 
have not felt (or have not obeyed the feeling) the impe- 
rious duty of dividing their heavenly bread with those 
who are famishing with hunger, and giving the water of 
life to those who are dying of thirst! How shall they 
appear in that great day when the conquests of the Lion 
of the tribe of Judah are ended ; when the mediatorial 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 169 

kingdom is delivered up unto the Father ; and the Judge 
of quick and dead sits on the great white throne, and to 
those on his left says, "I was hungry, and ye gave me 
no meat ; I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink V I 
say, how shall they appear who have made no exertions 
to tell the lost nations of the earth the necessity for pre- 
paring to meet their God ; and showing them the means 
of doing it, by affording them the blessings of the gospel 
of the grace of God? Let us beware lest the stone that 
struck the motley image, and dashed it to pieces, fall on 
us, and grind us to powder ! 

A religion, the very essence of which is love, cannot 
suffer at its altars a heart that is revengeful and uncha- 
ritable, or which does not use its utmost endeavours to 
revive love in the heart of another. 

Union among the followers of Christ is strongly re- 
commended. How can spiritual brethren fall out by 
the way ? Have they not all one Father, all one Head? 
Do they not form one body, and are they not all mem- 
bers of each other? Would it not be monstrous to see 
the nails pulling out the eyes, the hands tearing off the 
flesh from the body, the teeth biting out the tongue ? 
&c, &c. And is it less so to see the members of a 
Christian society bite and devour each other till they 
are consumed one of another ? 

God has many imitators of his power, independence, 
justice, &c, but few of his love, condescension, and 
kindness. 

God is merciful ; he will have man to resemble him : 
as far as he is merciful, feels a compassionate heart, and 
uses a benevolent hand, he resembles his Maker ; and 
the mercy he shows to others God will show to him. 
But it is not a sudden impression at the sight of a person 
in distress, which obliges a man to give something for 
the relief of the sufferer, that constitutes the merciful 
character. It is he who considers the poor ; who en- 
deavours to find them out; who looks into their circum- 
stances ; who is in the habit of doing so ; and actually, 
according to his power and means, goes about to do 
good ; that is the merciful man of whom God speaks 
with such high approbation, and to whom he promises a 
rich reward. 

The apostle, 1 Cor. xvi, 2, prescribeth the most 
8 



170 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

convenient and proper method of making contribution 
for the relief of the poor. 1. Every man was to feel it 
his duty to succour his brethren in distress. 2. He was 
to do this according to the ability which God gave him. 
3. He was to do this at the conclusion of the week, 
when he had cast up his weekly earnings, and had sseen 
how much God had prospered his labour. 4. He was 
then to bring it on the first day of the week, as is most 
likely, to the church or assembly, that it might be put 
into the common treasury. 5. We learn from this that 
the weekly contribution could not be always the same, 
as each man was to lay by as God had prospered him. 
Now, some weeks he would gain more ; others, less. 
6. It appears from the whole that the first day of the 
week, which is the Christian Sabbath, was the day on 
which their principal religious meetings were held in 
Corinth and the churches of Galatia; and, consequently, 
iu all other places where Christianity had prevailed. 
This is a strong argument for the keeping of the Chris- 
tian Sabbath. 7. We may observe that the apostle fol- 
lows here the rule of the synagogue ; it was a regular 
custom among the Jews to make their collections for 
the poor on the Sabbath day, that they might not be 
without the necessaries of life, and might not be pre- 
vented from coming to the synagogue. 8. For the pur- 
pose of making this provision, they had a purse, which 
was called " the purse of the alms," or, what we would 
term, " the poor's box." This is what the apostle seems 
to mean when he says, " Let him lay by him in store" — 
Let him put it in the alms purse, or in the poor's box. 
9. It was a maxim also with them that, if they found any 
money, they were not to put it in their private purse, 
but in that which belonged to the poor. 10. The pious 
Jews believed that as salt seasoned food, so did alms 
riches ; and that he who did not give alms of what he 
had, his riches should be dispersed. The moth would 
corrupt the bags, and the canker corrode the money, 
unless the mass was sanctified by giving a part to the 
poor. 

Whatever love we may pretend to mankind, if we are 
not charitable and benevolent, we give the lie to our 
profession. If we have not bowels of compassion we 
have not the love of God in us ; if we shut up our bowels 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 171 

against the poor, we shut Christ out of our hearts, and 
ourselves out of heaven. 

Let the person who is called to perform any act of 
compassion or mercy to the wretched, do it, not grudg- 
ingly nor of necessity, but from a spirit of pure benevo- 
lence and sympathy. The poor are often both wicked 
and worthless ; and if those who are called to minister 
to them as stewards, overseers, &c, do not take care, 
they will get their hearts hardened with the frequent 
proofs they will have of deception, lying, idleness, &c. 
And on this account it is that so many of those who have 
been called to minister to the poor in parishes, work- 
houses, and religious societies, when they come to re- 
linquish their employment, find that many of their moral 
feelings have been considerably blunted, and perhaps the 
only reward they get for their services is the character 
of being hard-hearted. If whatever is done in this way 
be not done unto the Lord, it can never be done with 
cheerfulness. 

Works of charity and mercy should be done as much 
in private as is consistent with the advancement of the 
glory of God, and the effectual relief of the poor. 

He whom God has employed in a work of mercy has 
need to return, by prayer, as speedily to his Maker as 
he can, lest he should be tempted to value himself on 
account of that in which he has no merit ; for the good 
that is done upon earth the Lord doeth it alone. 

Love heightens the smallest actions, and gives a worth 
to them, which they cannot possess without it. 

Love never supposes that a good action may have a 
bad motive ; gives every man credit for his profession 
of religion, uprightness, godly zeal, &c, while nothing- 
is seen in his conduct or in his spirit inconsistent with 
this profession. 

Labour after a compassionate or sympathizing mind. 
Let your heart feel for the distressed ; enter into their 
sorrows, and bear a part of their burdens. It is a fact, 
attested by universal experience, that by sympathy a 
man may receive into his own affectionate feelings a 
measure of the distress of his friend, and that his friend 
does find himself relieved in the same proportion as the 
other has entered into his griefs. " But how do you 
account for this V I do not account for it at all ; it 



172 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

depends upon certain laws of nature, the principles of 
which have not been as yet duly developed. 

Do not withhold from any man the offices of mercy 
and kindness ; you have been God's enemy, and yet 
God fed, clothed, and preserved you alive ; do to your 
enemy as God has done to you. If your enemy be 
hungry, feed him ; if he be thirsty, give him drink ; so 
has God dealt with you. And has not a sense of his 
goodness and long suffering toward you been the means 
of melting down your heart into penitential compunc- 
tion, gratitude, and love toward him ? How know you 
that a similar conduct toward your enemy may not have 
the same gracious influence on him toward you? Your 
kindness may be the means of begetting in him a sense 
of his guilt ; and, from being your fell enemy, he may 
become your real friend. 

He who loves only his friends does nothing for God's 
sake. He who loves for the sake of pleasure, or interest, 
pays himself. 

A moral enemy is more easily overcome by kindness 
than by hostility. Against the latter he arms himself; 
and all the evil passions of his heart concentrate them 
selves in opposition to him who is striving to retaliate 
by violence the injurious acts which he has received 
from him. But where the injured man is labouring to 
do him good for his evil ; to repay his curses with bless- 
ings and prayers, his evil passions have no longer any 
motive, any incentive; his mind relaxes; the turbulence 
of his passions is calmed ; reason and conscience are 
permitted to speak ; he is disarmed, or, in other words, 
he finds that he has no use for his weapons ; he beholds 
in the injured man a magnanimous friend, whose mind 
is superior to all the insults and injuries which he has 
received, and who is determined never to permit the 
heavenly principle that influences his soul to bow itself 
before the miserable, mean, and wretched spirit of re- 
venge. This amiable man views in his enemy a spirit 
which he beholds with horror, and he cannot consent to 
receive into his own bosom a disposition which he sees 
to be destructive to another ; and he knows that as soon 
as he begins to avenge himself, he places himself on a 
par with the unprincipled man whose conduct he has so 
much reason to blame, and whose spirit he has so much 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 173 

cause to abominate. He who avenges himself receives 
into his own heart all the evil and disgraceful passions 
by which his enemy is rendered both wretched and con- 
temptible. There is the voice of eternal reason in, 
" Avenge not yourselves : overcome evil with good ;" 
as well as the high authority and command of the living 
God. 

Wicked words and sinful actions may be considered 
as the overflowings of a heart that is more than full of 
the spirit of wickedness ; and holy words and righteous 
deeds may be considered as the overflowings of a heart 
that is filled with the Holy Spirit, and running over with 
love to God and man. 

" Love ye your enemies." — This is the most sublime 
precept ever delivered to man : a false religion durst not 
give a precept of this nature, because, without super- 
natural influence, it must be for ever impracticable. In 
these words of our blessed Lord we see the tenderness, 
sincerity, extent, disinterestedness, pattern, and issue of 
the love of God, dwelling in man ; a religion which has 
for its foundation the union of God and man in the same 
person, and the death of this august Being for his ene- 
mies ; which consists on earth in a reconciliation of the 
Creator with his creatures, and which is to subsist in 
heaven only in the union of the members with the 
Head : could such a religion as this ever tolerate hatred 
in the soul of man, even to his most inveterate foes ? 

We are not to suppose that the love of God casts out 
every kind of fear from the soul ; it only casts out that 
which has torment. A filial fear is consistent with the 
highest degrees of love ; and even necessary to the pre- 
servation of that grace. This is properly its guardian ; 
and without this, love would soon degenerate into list- 
lessness or presumptive boldness. 

Nor does it cast out that fear which is so necessary 
to the preservation of life ; that fear which leads a man 
to flee from danger lest his life should be destroyed. 

Nor does it cast out that fear which may be engen- 
dered by sudden alarm. All these are necessary to our 
well being. But it destroys, 1. The fear of want ; 2. The 
fear of death ; and, 3. The fear or terror of judgment. 
All these fears bring torment, and are inconsistent with 
this perfect love. 



174 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

Peace.— Christ keeps that heart in peace in which 
he dwells and rules. This peace passeth all understand- 
ing ; it is of a very different nature from all that can 
arise from human occurrences ; it is a peace which 
Christ has purchased, and which God dispenses ; it is felt 
by all the truly godly, but can be explained by none; 
it is communion with the Father, and his Son Jesus 
Christ, by the power and influence of the Holy Ghost. 

To live in a state of peace with one's neighbours, 
friends, and even family, is often very difficult. But the 
man who loves God must labour after this, for it is in- 
dispensably necessary even for his own sake. A man 
cannot have broils and misunderstandings with others, 
without having his own peace very materially disturbed ; 
he must, to be happy, be at peace with all men, whether 
they will be at peace with him or not. The apostle 
knew that it would be difficult to get into and maintain 
such a state of peace ; and this his own words amply 
prove : " And if it be possible, as much as lieth in you, 
live peaceably." Though it be but barely possible, 
labour after it. 

In civil society men must, in order to taste tranquil 
lity, resolve to bear something from their neighbours, 
they must suffer, pardon, and give up many things ; 
without doing which, they must live in such a state of 
continual agitation as will render life itself insupportable. 
Without this giving and forgiving spirit there wili be 
nothing in civil society, and even in Christian congre- 
gations, but divisions, evil surmisings, injurious dis 
courses, outrages, anger, vengeance, and, in a word, a 
total dissolution of the mystical body of Christ. Thus 
our interest in both worlds calls loudly upon us to give 
and forgive. 

Most of the disputes among Christians have been 
concerning nonessential points. Rites and ceremonies, 
even in the simple religion of Christ, have contributed 
their part in promoting those animosities by which 
Christians have been divided. Forms in worship and 
sacerdotal garments have not been without their influ- 
ence in this general disturbance. 

Such is the natural bigotry and narrowness of the 
human heart that we can scarcely allow that any beside 
ourselves possess the true religion. To indulge a dis- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 175 

position of this kind is highly blamable. The true 
religion is neither confined to one spot nor to one peo- 
ple ; it is spread in various forms over the whole earth. 
He who fills immensity has left a record of himself in 
every nation and among every people under heaven. 
Beware of the spirit of intolerance ; for bigotry produces 
uncharitableness ; and uncharitableness harsh judging ; 
and in such a spirit a man may think he does God 
service when he tortures or makes a burnt-offering of 
the person whom his narrow mind and hard heart have 
dishonoured with the name of " heretic." Such a spirit is 
not confined to any one community, though it has pre- 
dominated in some more than in others. But these 
things are highly displeasing in the sight of God. He, 
as the Father of the spirits of all flesh, loves every 
branch of his vastly extended family ; and, as far as we 
love one another, no matter of what sect or party, so 
far we resemble him. 

It is astonishing that any who profess the Christian 
name should indulge bitterness of spirit. Those who 
are censorious, who are unmerciful to the failings of 
others, who have fixed a certain standard by which they 
measure all persons in all circumstances, and unchris- 
tianize every one that does not come up to this standard, 
they have the bitterness against which the apostle speaks. 
In the last century there was a compound medicine, 
made up from a variety of drastic acid drugs and 
ardent spirits, which was called, hiera pier a, the holy 
bitter ; this medicine was administered in a multitude 
of cases, where it did immense evil, and perhaps in 
scarcely any case did it do good. It has ever appeared 
to furnish a proper epithet for the disposition mentioned 
above, the holy bitter, for the religiously censorious act 
under the pretence of superior sanctity. I have known 
such persons do much evil in a Christian society, but 
never knew an instance of their doing any good. 

Beware of contentions in religion ; if you dispute 
concerning any of its doctrines, let it be to find out 
truth ; not to support a preconceived and pre-established 
opinion. Avoid all polemical heat and rancour ; these 
prove the absence of the religion of Christ. Whatever 
does not lead you to love God and man more is most 
assuredly from beneath. The God of peace is the Author 



176 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

of Christianity, and the Prince of peace the Priest and 
Sacrifice of it ; therefore love one another, and leave off 
contention before it be meddled with. 

Joy. — Religious joy, properly tempered with con- 
tinual dependence on the help of God, meekness of 
mind, and self-diffidence, is a powerful means of strength- 
ening the soul. In such a state every duty is practica- 
ble, and every duty delightful. In such a frame of mind 
no man ever fell. 

Every man flies from sorrow, and seeks after joy ; 
and yet true joy must necessarily be the fruit of sorrow. 

Is it not common for interested persons to rejoice in 
the successes of an unjust and sanguinary war, in the 
sackage and burning of cities and towns? and is not 
the joy always in proportion to the slaughter that has 
been made of the enemy ? And do these call them- 
selves Christians ? Then we may expect that Moloch 
and his subdevils are not so far behind this descrip- 
tion of Christians as to render their case utterly des- 
perate. If such Christians can be saved, demons need 
not despair. 

Hope. — Hope is a sort of universal blessing, and one 
of the greatest which God has granted to man. To 
mankind in general life would be intolerable without 
it ; and it is as necessary as faith is, even to the follow- 
ers of God. 

Every man hopes for happiness ; and it is this hope 
that bears him up through all the ills of life. He sees 
and he feels evil, but he hopes for good. Despair is the 
opposite to hope ; where this takes place, a total de- 
rangement of all the mental faculties ensues ; and gene- 
rally, if not soon relieved, the wretched subject dies, or 
puts an end to life. 

What is the proper definition of hope? The follow- 
ing is the most common, and probably the best: — " The 
expectation of future good ;" an expectation, too, that 
arises from desire. It must be good, else it could not be 
desired ; it must be future, or it would not be an object 
of expectation : good in possession precludes hope. 
" Hope that is seen (possessed) is not hope ; for what a 
man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 177 

for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for 
it." A thing that was once an object of hope may have 
been attained ; and if so, hope, in reference to that, is at 
an end. Hope is never exercised but where there is a 
conviction, less or more deep, of the possibility of at- 
taining its object. As hope implies desire, it must be a 
natural or moral good that is its object, for nothing can 
be desired that is known to be evil. That which is 
good can alone gratify the heart ; and to gratify is to 
please, satisfy, and content. When Milton puts in the 
mouth of Satan the following speech : 

" So farewell hope, and with hope, farewell fear; 
Farewell remorse : all good to me is lost ; 
Evil, be thou my good :" 

the poet does not mean that the nature or operation of 
evil can be changed ; but that the diabolic heart might 
be pleased, satisfied, for the time, and contented with it, 
as a means of gratifying revenge and malice ; as all 
good was then to him beyond the reach and sphere of 
hope. None but the devil could have uttered such a 
speech ; as none but that archangel ruined could bring 
the fellest malice and revenge into successful action, so 
as to desire gratification from the result. Could Satan 
have taken evil in the place of good, so as to have rested 
satisfied with it, in that moment the nature of evil must 
have been changed to him, and hell cease to be a place 
of torment. But it is a diabolical boast, and has neither 
truth nor reason in it. 

In examining this grand subject farther, I would ob- 
serve that hope may be considered in a threefold sense : 
1. Simple hope. 2. Dead hope. 3. Living hope. 

1. Hope, simply considered in itself, according to its 
definition above, the expectation of future good ; this 
shows the existence of the thing, without activity in it- 
self, or operation in reference to its object. It exists, 
but in a state of carelessness and unconcern. This sort 
is nearly common to all men ; is not only without profit 
to them, because not used, but is generally, in its flutter- 
ings in the breast, like the ignus fatuus, that, instead of 
leading aright, leads astrajr, causing its possessor to rest 
in mere expectation, inoperative and indefinite ; without 
8* 



178 CHRISTIAN THEOLOOY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

any time to commence, or place to act in ; a principle 
which, from its misuse, rather deceives than helps the 
soul. In consequence of this, it has been called delu- 
sive hope, false hope, vain hope, &c. ; but hope in itself, 
which is a gift from God, is neither deceptive, false, nor 
vain. It is the misuse, or abuse of it, that deceives, 
leads astray, fills with vanity, &c. If properly used 
and applied, it may become even the anchor of the soul ; 
and is that power or principle on which the grace of 
God works in order to bring forth, in the end, that faith 
by which even mountains are removed. A wicked man 
may have this simple hope, and so may a hypocrite, and 
neither receive benefit from it ; yea, they may abuse it 
to their eternal damage ; and thus every power of the 
soul, and every gift of God, may be abused ; and in re- 
ference to this we may apply the homely but expressive 
lines of old Francis Quarles : — 

" Thus God's best gifts, usurp'd by wicked ones, 
To poison turn by their con-ta-gi-ons." 

2. Dead Hope. — I do not mean, by this, hope that is 
extinct ; for then it would cease to be hope, or any 
thing else. Nor do I mean hope that is entirely inac- 
tive., and which may, on this account, be considered 
morally dead ; but 1 mean that hope which has for its 
objects good things to come, after life is ended ; a hope 
that expects fruition of the objects of its attention when 
the present state of things closes for ever on its pos- 
sessor. Nor do I mean the hope that has for its object 
the glories of the invisible world ; but the hope which' 
misplaces its objects, that refers things which belong to 
the present state of being to a future state ; as it does 
the things which should be received here, in order to 
prepare for glory hereafter. This is a species of reli- 
gious hope, it has to do with religious matters ; such as 
pardon of sin, sanctification of the soul, and the acqui- 
sition of those graces which constitute " the mind that 
was in Christ :" — in a word, that holiness without which 
none shall ever see the Lord. It expects none of these 
in this life ; and that no consciousness of having received 
pardon can take place before death, if even then ; nor 
can any person, according to this hope, be saved from 
his sins till his body and soul are separated. Hence, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE HOLY SPIRIT. 179 

all its operations are in reference to death, and the se- 
parate state immediately succeeding. This hope, or 
this perversion of simple hope, paralyzes the Christian 
spirit, and in effect grieves the Spirit of God. No man 
ever receives good from it : it serves indeed to amuse 
the mind, and, in the proper sense of the word, divert 
the soul : — it turns it away from seeking present bless- 
ings, because its owner has made up his mind that none 
of these blessings can be received before death, and 
therefore he neither seeks nor expects them. It has the 
form, but it is the bane, of every good. In many, this 
species of hope, or this abuse of hope, is associated with 
much uncertainty, and sometimes with a degree of de- 
spair, even in reference to the things which it professes 
to have for its object, till at last the man doubts the im- 
mortality of the soul, and the resurrection of the body ; 
and in fine, the joys of heaven become problematical ! 
This is " dead hope"' — the hope that is looking for no 
spiritual good before death ; and generally appears to 
be inactive, and unconcerned even about them. It is 
the inhabitant of a dead soul ; of a lifeless, careless, 
Christless professor of Christianity ; — one who, though 
he have a name to live, yet is dead ; and who will find, 
when he comes to that bourne where his hope is ex- 
pected to act, and be realized, that it is like regiving up 
of the ghost : — he gives up his ghost and his hope toge- 
ther. It is also the hope of the wicked ; they expect to 
find God's mercy when they come to die : but the hope 
of the wicked, in death, perisheth. Of such persons, 
none can entertain hope but themselves. 

3. Living Hope. — The hope that lives and flourishes 
by hoping ! This is simple hope, in its greatest activity 
and operation : — hope with all the range of possible 
good in its eye, its expectation, and its desire. Its 
objects are necessarily future ; but all is future that is 
in the least degree removed from the present ; hence, 
the future, properly speaking, verges on the time that 
now is. The blessings that are necessary now it sees 
at hand ; desires the possession ; believes the possibility 
of immediate attainment ; claims the grace from God 
through Christ ; and thus realizes its object. Having 
received this blessing, it is strengthened to go out after 



180 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

more ; sees, desires, and claims the next in course ; 
receives this, and thus realizes another good that a 
short time before was future ; and continues to be future 
still to all others who do not act in this way. 

This hope is ever living by receiving. Pardon and 
holiness, the forgiveness of all sin, and purification from 
all unrighteousness, must be attained here. This it 
sees; of this it is convinced; and these blessings are 
the first objects of its attention. It claims them by a 
living energy, through faith ; for hope cannot exist nor 
act without faith ; and by faith is its work made perfect. 
Thus it is ever receiving. All future blessings, belong- 
ing to the human state of probation, which extends from 
the cradle to the grave, in the whole series of their ap- 
proximations, becoming present, are realized in their 
order ; and the innate power of the last received serves 
to support that which was received before, and thus on 
all the increasing glory there is a defence. 

This hope takes up all God's blessings in their places 
and proper series. There are some of its objects, as 
stated above, which necessarily belong to this life ; 
others that as necessarily belong to the world to come. 
It will not refer the blessings to be obtained here to the 
state after death ; nor will it attempt to anticipate those 
blessings which belong to eternity, in the present state. 
It is a discriminating grace, for it is ever supported by 
knowledge and faith. It walks uprightly, and there- 
fore surely. 

" Grace is in all its steps, heaven in its eye ; 
In every gesture dignity and love." 

The hope of eternal life is represented as the soul's 
anchor ; the world is the boisterous, dangerous sea ; the 
Christian course the voyage ; the port everlasting feli- 
city ; and the veil, or inner road, the royal dock in 
which that anchor was cast. The storms of life con- 
tinue but a short time ; the anchor, hope, if fixed by 
iaith in the eternal world, will infallibly prevent all 
shipwreck ; the soul may be variously tossed by various 
temptations, but will not drive, because the anchor is in 
sure ground, and itself is steadfast ; it does not drag, and 
it does not break ; faith, like the cable, is the connect- 
ing medium between the ship and the anchor, or the 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE HOLY SPIRIT. 181 

soul and its hope of heaven ; faith sees the haven, hope 
desires and anticipates the rest ; faith works, and hope 
holds fast ; and shortly the soul enters into the haven 
of eternal repose. 

A hope that is not rationally founded will have its 
expectations cut off; and then shame and confusion 
will be the portion of its possessor. But our hope is of 
a different kind ; it is founded on the goodness and 
truth of God ; and our religious experience shows us 
that we have not misapplied it, nor exercised it on 
wrong or improper objects. 

Meekness. — That man walks most safely who has 
the least confidence in himself. True magnanimity 
keeps God continually in view. He appoints it its 
work, and furnishes discretion and power ; and its chief 
excellence consists in being a resolute worker together 
with him. Pride ever sinks where humility swims, for 
that man who abases himself God will exalt. To know 
that we are dependent creatures is well ; to feel it, and 
to act suitably, is still better. 

A proud man is peculiarly odious in the sight of God ; 
and in the sight of reason how absurd ! A sinner, a 
fallen spirit — an heir of wretchedness and corruption, 
proud! Proud of what? Of an indwelling devil! 
Well ; — such persons shall be plentifully rewarded. 
They shall get their due, their whole due, and nothing 
but their due. 

The presumptuous person imagines he can do every 
thing, and can do nothing ; thinks he can excel all, and 
excels in nothing ; promises every thing, and performs 
nothing. The humble man acts quite a contrary part. 

The wise and just God often, in the course of his 
providence, permits great defects to be associated with 
great eminence, that he may hide pride from man, and 
cause him to think soberly of himself and his acquire- 
ments. "Let him that most assuredly standeth take 
heed lest he fall !" and let him who is in honour bear 
himself meekly, lest God defile his horn in the dust ; 
for God grants his gifts, not that the creature, but that 
himself, may be magnified. 



182 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 



XII.— ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

The word "sanctify" has two meanings. 1. It sig- 
nifies to consecrate, to separate from earth and common 
use, and to devote or dedicate to God and his service. 
2. It signifies to make holy or pure. 

Many talk much, and indeed well, of what Christ has 
done for us : but how little is spoken of what he is to 
do in us ! and yet all that he has done for us is in 
reference to what he is to do in us. He was incarnated, 
suffered, died, and rose again from the dead ; ascended 
to heaven, and there appears in the presence of God for 
us. These were all saving, atoning, and mediating acts 
for us ; that he might reconcile us to God ; that he 
might blot out our sin; that he might purge our con- 
sciences from dead works ; that he might bind the 
strong man armed — take away the armour in which he 
trusted, wash the polluted heart, destroy every foul and 
abominable desire, all tormenting and unholy tempers; 
that he might make the heart his throne, fill the soul 
with his light, power, and life ; and, in a word, " de- 
stroy the works of the devil." These are done in us ; 
without which we cannot be saved unto eternal life. 
But these acts done in us are consequent on the acts 
done for us : for had He not been incarnated, suffered, 
and died in our stead, we could not receive either par- 
don or holiness ; and did he not cleanse and purify our 
hearts, we conld not enter into the place where all is 
purity : for the beatific vision is given to them only 
who are purified from all unrighteousness ; for it is 
written, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall 
see God." Nothing is purified by death ; — nothing in 
the grave ; nothing in heaven. The living stones of 
the temple, like those of that at Jerusalem, are hewn, 
squared, and cut here, in the church militant, to pre- 
pare them to enter into the composition of the church 
triumphant. 

This perfection is the restoration of man to the state 
of holiness from which he fell, by creating him anew in 
Christ Jesus, and restoring to him that image and like- 
ness of God which he has lost. A higher meaning than 
this it cannot have ; a lower meaning it must not have. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION, 183 

God made man in that degree of perfection which 
was pleasing to his own infinite wisdom and goodness. 
Sin defaced this divine image ; Jesus came to restore it. 
Sin must have no triumph ; and the Redeemer of man- 
kind must have his glory. But if man be not perfectly 
saved from all sin, sin does triumph, and Satan exult, 
because they have done a mischief that Christ either 
cannot or will not remove. To say he cannot, would be 
shocking blasphemy against the infinite power and dig- 
nity of the great Creator ; to say he will not, would be 
equally such against the infinite benevolence and holi- 
ness of his nature. All sin, whether in power, guilt, or 
defilement, is the work of the devil ; and he, Jesus, 
came to destroy the work of the devil ; and as all un- 
righteousness is sin, so his blood cleanseth from all sin, 
because it cleanseth from all unrighteousness. 

Many stagger-at the term perfection in Christianity ; 
because they think that what is implied in it is incon- 
sistent with a state of probation, and savours of pride 
and presumption : but we must take good heed how we 
stagger at any word of God ; and much more how we 
deny or fritter away the meaning of any of his sayings, 
lest he reprove us, and we be found liars before him. 
But it may be that the term is rejected because it is not 
understood. Let us examine its import. 

The word " perfection," in reference to any person 
or thing, signifies that such person or thing is complete 
or finished ; that it has nothing redundant, and is in 
nothing defective. And hence that observation of a 
learned civilian is at once both correct and illustrative, 
namely, ' ; We count those things perfect which want 
nothing requisite for the end whereto they were insti- 
tuted." And to he perfect often signifies " to be blame- 
less, clear, irreproachable ;" and, according to the above 
definition of Hooker, a man may be said to be perfect 
who answers the end for which God made him ; and as 
God requires every man to love him with all his heart, 
soul, mind, and strength, and his neighbour as himself; 
then he is a perfect man that does so ; he answers the 
end for which God made him ; and this is more evident 
from the nature of that love which fills his heart : for, 
as love is the principle of obedience, so he that loves 
his God with all his powers will obey him with all his 



181 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY- — ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

powers ; and he who loves his neighbour as himself 
will not only do no injury to him, but, on the contrary, 
labour to promote his best interests. Why the doctrine 
which enjoins such a state of perfection as this should 
be dreaded, ridiculed, or despised, is a most strange 
thing ; and the opposition to it can only be from that 
carnal mind that is enmity to God ; " that is not subject 
to the law of God, neither indeed can be." And had I 
no other proof that man is fallen from God, his oppo- 
sition to Christian holiness would be to me sufficient. 

The whole design of God was to restore man to his 
image, and raise him from the ruins of his fall ; in a 
word, to make him perfect ; to blot out all his sins, 
purify his soul, and fill him with holiness ; so that no 
unholy temper, evil desire, or impure affection or pas- 
sion shall either lodge, or have any being within him ; 
this and this only is true religion, or Christian perfec- 
tion ; and a less salvation than this would be dishonour- 
able to the sacrifice of Christ, and the operation of the 
Holy Ghost; and would be as unworthy of the appella- 
tion of " Christianity," as it would be of that of "holi- 
ness or perfection." They who ridicule this are scoffers 
at the word of God ; many of them totally irreligious 
men, sitting in the seat of the scornful. They who deny 
it, deny the whole scope and design of divine revelation 
anil the mission of Jesus Christ. And they who preach 
the opposite doctrine are either speculative Antinomians, 
or plea lers for Baal. 

When St. Paul says he " warns every man, and 
teaches every man in all wisdom, that he may present 
every man perfect in Christ Jesus," he must mean 
something. What then is this something? It must 
mean " that holiness without which none shall see the 
Lord." Call it by what name we please, it must imply 
the pardon of all transgression, and the removal of the 
whole body of sin and death ; for this must take place 
before we can be like him, and see him as he is, in the 
effulgence of his own glory. This fitness, then, to appear 
before God, and thorough preparation for eternal glory, 
is what I plead for, pray for, and heartily recommend to 
all true believers, under the name of Christian perfec- 
tion. Had I a better name, one more energetic, one 
with a greater plenitude of meaning, one more worthy 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 1S5 

of the efficacy of the blood that bought our peace, and 
cleanseth from all unrighteousness, I would gladly adopt 
and use it. Even the word " perfection" has, in some 
relations, so many qualifications and abatements that 
cannot comport with that full and glorious salvation 
recommended in the gospel, and bought and sealed by 
the blood of the cross, that I would gladly lay it by, 
and employ a word more positive and unequivocal in its 
meaning, and more worthy of the merit of the infinite 
atonement of Christ, and of the energy of his almighty 
Spirit ; but there is none in our language ; which I 
deplore as an inconvenience and a loss. 

Why then are there so many, even among sincere and 
godly ministers and people, who are so much opposed to 
the term, and so much alarmed at the profession ? I 
answer, Because they think no man can be fully saved 
from sin in this life. I ask, Where is this, in unequivo- 
cal words, written in the New Testament ? Where, in 
that book, is it intimated that sin is never wholly de- 
stroyed till death takes place, and the soul and the body 
are separated ? Nowhere. In the popish baseless doc- 
trine of purgatory, this doctrine, not with more rational 
consequences, is held : this doctrine allows that, so 
inveterate is sin, it cannot be wholly destroyed even 
in death ; and that a penal fire, in a middle state between 
heaven and hell, is necessary to atone for that which the 
blood of Christ had not cancelled ; and to purge from 
that which the energy of the almighty Spirit had not 
cleansed before death. 

Even papists could not see that a moral evil was de- 
tained in the soul through its physical connection with 
the body ; and that it required the dissolution of this 
physical connection before the moral contagion could be 
removed. Protestants, who profess, and most certainly 
possess, a better faith, are they alone that maintain the 
deathbed purgatory ; and how positively do they hold 
out death as the complete deliverer from all corruption, 
and the final destroyer of sin, as if it were revealed in 
every page of the Bible ! Whereas, there is not one 
passage in the sacred volume that says any such thing. 
Were this true, then death, far from being the last enemy, 
would be the last and best friend, and the greatest of all 
deliverers : for if the last remains of all the indwelling 



186 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

sin of all believers is to be destroyed by death, (and a 
fearful mass this will make,) then death, that removes 
it, must be the highest benefactor of mankind. The 
truth is, he is neither the cause nor the means of its de- 
struction. It is the blood of Jesus alone that cleanseth 
from all unrighteousness. 

It is supposed that indwelling sin is useful even to 
true believers, because it humbles them and keeps them 
low in their own estimation. A little examination will 
show that this is contrary to the fact. It is generally, 
if not universally allowed, that pride is of the essence 
of sin, if not its very essence ; and the root whence all 
moral obliquity flows. How then can pride humble us ? 
Is not this absurd ? Where is there a sincere Christian, 
be his creed what it may, that does not deplore his proud, 
rebellious, and unsubdued heart and will, as the cause 
of all his wretchedness ; the thing that mars his best 
sacrifices, and prevents his communion with God ? How 
often do such people say or sing, both in their public and 
private devotions, — 

" But pride, that busy sin, 
Spoils all that I perforin !" 

Were there no pride, there would be no sin ; and the 
heart form which it is cast out has the humility, meek- 
ness, and gentleness of Christ implanted in its stead. 

But still it is alleged, as an indubitable fact, that " a 
man is humbled under a sense of indwelling sin." I 
grant that they who see, and feel, and deplore their in- 
dwelling sin, are humbled : but is it the sin that hum- 
bles ? No. It is the grace of God, that shows and 
condemns the sin, that humbles us. Neither the devil 
nor his work will ever show themselves. Pride works 
frequently under a dense mask, and will often assume 
the garb of humility. How true is that saying, and of 
how many is it the language ! 

" Proud I am my wants to see, 
Proud of my humility." 

And, to conceal his working, even Satan himself is trans- 
formed into an angel of light ! It appears then that we 
attribute this boasted humiliation to a wrong cause. We 
never are humbled under a sense of indwelling sin till 
the Spirit of God drags it to the light, and shows us, not 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 187 

only its horrid deformity, but its hostility to God ; and 
he manifests it, that he may take it away : but a false 
opinion causes man to hug the monster, and to contem- 
plate their chains with complacency ! 

It has been objected to this perfection, this perfect 
work of God in the soul, that " the greater sense we 
have of our own sinfulness, the more will Christ be ex- 
alted in the eye of the soul : for, if the thing were possi- 
ble that a man might be cleansed from all sin in this 
life, he would feel no need of a Saviour ; Christ would 
be undervalued by him as no longer needing his saving 
power." This objection mistakes the whole state of 
the case. How is Christ exalted in the view of the soul? 
How is it that he becomes precious to us ? Is it not 
from a sense of what he has done for us ; and what he 
has done in us ? Did any man ever love God till he had 
felt that God loved him? Do we not "love him because 
he first loved us ?" Is it the name Jesus that is precious 
to us ? or Jesus the Saviour saving us from our sins? Is 
all our confidence placed in him because of some one 
saving act ? or, because of his continual operation as the 
Saviour ? Can any effect subsist without its cause ? 
Must not the cause continue to operate in order to main- 
tain the effect ? Do we value a good cause more for the 
instantaneous production of a good and important effect, 
than we do for its continual energy, exerted to maintain 
that good and important effect ? All these questions can 
be answered by a child. What is it that cieanseth the 
soul and destroys sin ? Is it not the mighty power of 
the. grace of God ? What is it that keeps the soul clean ? 
Is it not the same power dwelling in us? No more can 
an effect subsist without its cause, than a sanctified soul 
abide in holiness without the indwelling Sanctifier. When 
Christ casts out the strong-armed man he takes away 
that armour in which he trusted, he spoils his goods, he 
cleanses and enters into the house, so that the heart be- 
comes the habitation of God through the Spirit. Can 
then a man undervalue that Christ who not only blotted 
out his iniquity, but cleansed his soul from all sin ; and 
whose presence and inward mighty working constitute 
all his holiness and all his happiness ? Impossible ! 
Jesus was never so highly valued, so intensely loved, so 
affectionately obeyed, as now. The great Saviour has 



188 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY-^-ENTIRE SANCTIFiCATIO. 

not his highest glory from his atoning and redeeming 
acts, but from the manifestation of his saving power. 

"But the persons who profess to have been made 
thus perfect are proud and supercilious, and their whole 
conduct says to their neighbour, i Stand by, I am holier 
than thou.' " No person that acts so has ever received 
this grace. He is either a hypocrite or a self-deceiver. 
Those who have received it are full of meekness, gentle- 
ness, and long suffering : they love God with all their 
hearts, they love even their enemies ; love the whole 
human family, and are servants of all. They know they 
have nothing but what they have received. In the 
splendour of God's holiness they feel themselves ab- 
sorbed. They have neither light, power, love, nor 
happiness, but from their indwelling Saviour. Their 
holiness, though it fills the soul, yet is only a drop from 
the infinite Ocean. The flame of their love, though it 
penetrate their whole being, is only a spark from the 
incomprehensible Sun of righteousness. In a spirit and 
in a way which none but themselves can fully compre- 
hend and feel, they can say or sing, — 

" I loathe myself when God I see, 
And into nothing fall : 
Content that Christ exalted be ; 
And God is all in all." 

It has been no small mercy to me, that, in the course 
of my religious life, I have met with many persons who 
professed that the blood of Christ had saved them from 
all sin, and whose profession was maintained by an 
immaculate life ; but I never knew one of them that 
was not of the spirit above described. They were men 
of the strongest faith, the purest love, the holiest affec- 
tions, the most obedient lives, and the most useful in 
society. I have seen such walking with God for many 
years : and as I had the privilege of observing their 
walk in life, so have I been privileged with their testi- 
mony at death, when their sun appeared to grow 
broader and brighter at its setting ; and, though they 
came through great tribulation, they found that their 
robes were washed and made white through the blood 
of the Lamb* They fully witnessed the grand effects 
which in this life flow from justification, adoption, and 
sanctification ; namely, assurance of God's love, peace 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 159 

of conscience, joy in the Holy Ghost, increase of grace, 
and perseverance in the same to the end of their lives. 
O God ! let my death be like that of these righteous ! 
and let my end be like theirs ! Amen. 

It is scarcely worth mentioning another objection that 
has been started by the ignorant, the worthless, and 
the wicked. " The people that profess this leave Christ 
out of the question ; they either think that they have 
purified their own hearts, or that they have gained their 
pretended perfection by their own merits." Nothing 
can be more false than this calumny. I know that 
people well in whose creed the doctrine of " salvation 
from all sin in this life" is a prominent article. But 
that people hold most conscientiously that all our salva- 
tion, from the first dawn of light in the soul to its entry 
into the kingdom of glory, is all by and through Christ. 
He alone convinces the soul of sin, justifies the ungodly, 
sanctifies the unholy, preserves in this state of salvation, 
and brings to everlasting blessedness. No soul ever 
was or can be saved but through his agony and bloody 
sweat, his cross and passion, his death and burial, his 
glorious resurrection and ascension, and continued 
intercession at the right hand of God. 

If men would but spend as much time in fervently 
calling upon God to cleanse the blood that he has not 
cleansed, as they spend in decrying this doctrine, what 
a glorious state of the church should we soon witness! 
Instead of compounding with iniquity, and tormenting 
their minds to find out with how little grace they may 
be saved, they would renounce the devil and all his 
works ; and be determined never to rest till they had 
found that He had bruised him under their feet, and 
that the blood of Christ had cleansed them from all 
unrighteousness. Why is it that men will not try how 
far God will save them? nor leave off praying and 
believing for more and more, till they find that God has 
held his hand ? When they find that their agonizing 
faith and prayer receive no farther answer, then, and 
not till then, they may conclude that God will be no 
farther gracious, and that he will not save to the utter- 
most them who come to him through Christ Jesus. 

But it is farther objected, that even St. Paul himself 
denies this doctrine of perfection, disclaiming it in 



1.90 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

reference to himself: "Not as though I had already 
attained, either were already perfect ; but I follow- 
after," Phil, iii, 12. This place is mistaken : the apos- 
tle is not speaking of his restoration to the image of 
God ; but to completing his ministerial course, and 
receiving the crown of martyrdom ; as J,, have fully 
shown in my notes on this place, and to which I must 
beg to refer the reader. There is another point that 
has been produced, at least indirectly, in the form of an 
objection to this doctrine: "Where are those adult, 
those perfect Christians ? We know none such ; but 
we have heard that some persons professing those ex- 
traordinary degrees of holiness have become scandalous 
in their lives." When a question of this kind is asked 
by one who fears God, and earnestly desires his salva- 
tion, and only wishes to have full evidence that the 
thing is attainable, that he may shake himself from the 
dust, and arise and go out, and possess the good land — ; 
it deserves to be seriously answered. To such I would 
say, There may be several, even in the circle of your own 
religious acquaintance, whose evil tempers and unholy 
affections God has destroyed ; and having filled them 
with his own holiness, they are enabled to love him 
w r ith all their heart, soul, mind, and strength ; and their 
neighbour as themselves. But such make no public 
professions : their conduct, their spirit, the whole 
tenor of their life, is their testimony. Again : there 
may be none such among your religious acquaintance, 
because they do not know their privilege, or they un- 
fortunately sit under a ministry where the doctrine is 
decried ; and in such congregations and churches 
holiness never abounds ; men are too apt to be slothful, 
and unfaithful to the grace they have received; they 
need not their minister's exhortations to beware of 
looking for or expecting a heart purified from all un- 
righteousness ; striving or agonizing to " enter in at the 
strait gate" is not pleasant work to flesh and blood ; 
and they are glad to have any thing to countenance 
their spiritual indolence ; and such ministers have 
always a powerful coadjutor ; the father of lies, and the 
spirit of error will work in the unrenewed heart, filling 
it with darkness, and prejudice, and unbelief. No 
wonder, then, that in such places, and under such a 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 191 

ministry, there is no man that can be "presented per- 
fect in Christ Jesus." But wherever the trumpet gives 
a certain sound, and the people go forth to battle, 
headed by the Captain of their salvation, there the foe 
is routed, and genuine believers brought into the liberty 
of the children of God. 

As to some having professed to have received this sal- 
vation, and afterward become scandalous in their lives, 
(though in all my long ministerial labours, and extensive 
religious acquaintance, I never found but one example,) 
I would just observe that they might possibly have been 
deceived ; thought they had what they had not ; or they 
might have become unfaithful to that grace and lost it ; 
and this is possible through the whole range of a state 
of probation. There have been angels who kept not 
their first estate ; and we all know, to our cost, that he 
■who was the head and fountain of the whole human 
family, who was made in the image and likeness of God, 
sinned against God, and fell from that state. And so 
may any of his descendants fall from any degree of the 
grace of God while in their state of probation ; and any 
man and every man must fall, whenever he or they 
cease to watch unto prayer, and cease to be " workers 
together with God." Faith must ever be kept in lively 
exercise, working by love ; and that love is only safe 
when found exerting its energies in the path of obedi- 
ence. An objection of this kind against the doctrine of 
Christian perfection will apply as forcibly against the 
whole revelation of God as it can do against one of the 
doctrines ; because that revelation brings the account of 
the defection of angels and of the fall of man. The 
truth is, no doctrine of God stands upon the knowledge, 
experience, faithfulness, or unfaithfulness of man ; it 
stands on the veracity of God who gave it. If there 
were not a man to be found who was justified freely 
through the redemption that is by Jesus ; yet the doc- 
trine of "justification by faith" is true; for it is a 
doctrine that stands on the truth of God. And suppose 
not one could be found in all the churches of Christ 
whose heart was purified from all unrighteousness, and 
who loved God and man with all his regenerated powers, 
yet the doctrine of Christian perfection would still be 
true ; for Christ was manifested that he might destroy 



V32 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

the work of the devil ; and his blood cleanseth from all 
unrighteousness. And suppose every man be a liar, God 
is true. 

It is not the profession of a doctrine that establishes 
its truth ; it is the truth of God, from which it has pro- 
ceeded. Man's experience may illustrate it; but it is 
God's truth that confirms it. 

In all cases of this nature, we must for ever cease 
from man, implicitly credit God's testimony, and look 
to Him in and through whom all the promises of God 
are yea and amen. 

To be filled with God is a great thing; to be filled 
with the fulness of God is still greater ; to be filled 
with all the fulness of God is greatest of all. This 
utterly bewilders the sense and confounds the under- 
standing, by leading at once to consider the immensity 
of God, the infinitude of his attributes, and the absolute 
perfection of each ! But there must be a sense in which 
even this wonderful petition was understood by the 
apostle, and may be comprehended by us. Most peo- 
ple, in quoting these words, endeavour to correct or 
explain the apostle by adding the word communicable. 
But this is as idle as it is useless and impertinent. Rea- 
son surely tells us that St. Paul would not pray that 
they should be filled with what could not be commu- 
nicated. The apostle certainly meant what he said, and 
would be understood in his own meaning ; and we may 
soon see what this meaning is. 

By the " fulness of God," we are to understand all 
the gifts and graces which he has promised to bestow 
on man in order to his full salvation here, and his being 
fully prepared for the enjoyment of glory hereafter. 
To be filled with all the fulness of God is to have the 
heart emptied of and cleansed from all sin and defile- 
ment, and filled with humility, meekness, gentleness, 
goodness, justice, holiness, mercy, and truth, and love 
to God and man. And that this implies a thorough 
emptying of the soul of every thing that is not of God, 
and leads not to him, is evident from this, that what God 
fills neither sin nor Satan can fill, nor in any wise 
occupy; for, if a vessel be filled with one fluid or sub- 
stance, not a drop or particle of any other kind can 
enter it, without displacing the same quantum of the 



. CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIBTCATION. 193 

original matter as that which is afterward introduced. 
God cannot be said to fill the whole soul while any 
place, part, passion, or faculty is filled, or less or more 
occupied, by sin or Satan : and as neither sin nor Satan 
can be where God fills and occupies the whole, so the 
terms of the prayer state that Satan shall neither have 
any dominion over that soul nor being in it. A fulness 
of humility precludes all pride; of meekness, precludes 
anger ; of gentleness, all ferocity ; of goodness, all 
evil; of justice, all injustice; of holiness, all sin; of 
mercy, all unkindness and revenge ; of truth, all falsity 
and dissimulation : and where God is loved with all the 
heart, soul, mind, and strength, there is no room for 
enmity or hatred to him, or to any thing connected 
with him ; so, where a man loves his neighbour as him- 
self, no ill shall be worked to that neighbour ; but, on 
the contrary, every kind affection will exist toward him ; 
and every kind action, so far as power and circum- 
stances can permit, will be done to him. Thus the 
being filled with God's fulness will produce constant, 
pious, and affectionate obedience to him, and unvarying 
benevolence toward one's neighbour ; that is, any man, 
any and every human being. Such a man is saved 
from all sin ; the law is fulfilled in him ; and he ever 
possesses and acts under the influence of that love to 
God and man which is the fulfilling of the law. It is 
impossible, with any Scriptural or rational consistency, 
to understand these words in any lower sense ; but how 
much more they imply, (and more they do imply,) who 
can tell ? 

Many preachers, and multitudes of professing people, 
are studious to find out how many imperfections and 
infidelities, and how much inward sinfulness, are con- 
sistent with a safe state in religion ; but how few, very 
few, are bringing out the fair gospel standard to try the 
height of the members of the church ; whether they be 
fit for the heavenly army ; whether their stature be 
such as qualifies them for the ranks of the church mili- 
tant! "the measure of the stature of the fulness" is 
seldom ,seen ; the measure of the stature of littleness, 
dwarfishness, and emptiness, is often exhibited. 

Some say, " The body of sin in believers is, indeed, 
an enfeebled, conquered, and deposed tyrant, and the 

9 



194 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

stroke of death finishes its destruction." So, then, the 
death of Christ and the influences of the Holy Spirit 
were only sufficient to depose and enfeeble the tyrant sin ; 
but our death must come in to effect his total destruc- 
tion ! Thus our death is, at least partially, our Saviour ; 
and thus that which was an effect of sin, (" for sin en- 
tered into the world, and death by sin,") becomes the 
means of finally destroying it : that is, the effect of a 
cause can become so powerful as to react upon that 
cause and produce its annihilation! The divinity and 
philosophy of this sentiment are equally absurd. It is 
the blood of Christ alone that cleanses from all unright- 
eousness ; and the sanctification of a believer is no 
more dependent on death than his justification. If it be 
said that "believers do not cease from sin till they die," 
I have only to say they are such believers as do not 
make a proper use of their faith : and what can be said 
more of the whole herd of transgressors and infidels ? 
They cease to sin when they cease to breathe. If the 
Christian religion bring no other privileges than this to 
its upright followers, well may we ask, "Wherein doth 
the wise man differ from the fool, for they have both 
one end?" But the whole gospel teaches a contrary 
doctrine. 

It is strange there should be found a person believing 
the whole gospel system and yet living in sin ! " Sal- 
vation from sin" is the long continued sound, as it is 
the spirit and design, of the gospel. Our Christian 
name, our baptismal covenant, our profession of faith in 
Christ, and avowed belief in his word, all call us to 
vhis : can it be said that we have any louder calls than 
they ? Our self-interest, as it respects the happiness of 
a godly life, and the glories of eternal blessedness ; the 
pains and wretchedness of a life of sin, leading to the 
worm that never dies, and the fire that is not quenched ; 
second, most powerfully, the above calls. Reader, lay 
these things to heart, and answer this question to God : 
" How shall I escape if I neglect so great salvation ?" 
And then, as thy conscience shall answer, let thy mind 
and thy hand begin to act. 

As there is no end to the merits of Christ incarnated 
and crucified ; no bounds to the mercy and love of God ; 
no let or- hinderance to the almighty energy and sancti- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 19§ 

fying influence of the Holy Spirit ; no limits to the 
iraprovability of the human soul; so there can be no 
bounds to the saving influence which God will dispense 
to the heart of every genuine believer. We may ask 
and receive, and our joy shall be full ! Well may we 
bless and praise God, " who has called us into such a 
state of salvation ;" a state in which we may be thus 
saved ; and, by the grace of that state, continue in the 
same to the end of our lives ! 

As sin is the cause of the ruin of mankind, the gospel 
system, which exhibits its cure, is fitly called " good 
news, or glad tidings ;" and it is good news, because it 
proclaims Him who saves his people from their sins ; 
and it would indeed be dishonourable to that grace, and 
the infinite merit of Him who procured it, to suppose, 
much more to assert, that sin had made wounds which 
grace would not heal. Of such a triumph Satan shall 
ever be deprived. 

" He that committeth sin is of the devil." Hear this, 
ye who plead for Baal, and cannot bear the thought of 
that doctrine that states believers are to be saved from 
all sin in this life ! He who committeth sin is a child 
of the devil, and shows that he has still the nature of the 
devil in him ; " for the devil sinneth from the begin- 
ing :" he was the father of sin, — brought sin into the 
world, and maintains sin in the world by living in the 
hearts of his own children, and thus leading them to 
transgression ; and persuading others that they cannot 
be saved from their sins in this life, that he may secure 
a continual residence in their heart. He also knows 
that if he has a place throughout life he will probably 
have it at death ; and, if so, throughout eternity. 

" That is," say some, '_' he does not sin habitually as 
he formerly did." This is bringing the influence and 
privileges of the heavenly birth very low indeed. We 
have the most indubitable evidence that many of the 
heathen philosophers had acquired, by mental discipline 
and cultivation, an entire ascendency over all their 
wonted vicious habits. Perhaps my reader will recol- 
lect the story of the physiognomist, who, coming into 
the place where Socrates was delivering a lecture, his 
pupils, wishing to put the principles of the man's science 
to proof, desired him to examine the face of their master, 



196 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

and say what his moral character was. After a full 
contemplation of the philosopher's visage, he pronoun- 
ced him " the most gluttonous, drunken, brutal, and 
libidinous old man that he had ever met." As the cha- 
racter of Socrates was the reverse of all this, his disci- 
ples began to insult the physiognomist. Socrates inter- 
fered, and said, " The principles of his science may be 
very correct ; for such I was, but I have conquered it 
by my philosophy." O ye Christian divines ! ye real 
or pretended gospel ministers ! will ye allow the influ- 
ence of the grace of Christ a sway not even so exten- 
sive as that of the philosophy of a heathen who never 
heard of the true God ? 

Many tell us that " no man can be saved from sin in 
this life." Will these persons permit us to ask, How 
much sin may we be saved from in this life ? Some- 
thing must be ascertained on this subject: 1. That the 
soul may have some determinate object in view. 2. That 
it may not lose its time, or employ its faith and energy, 
in praying for what is impossible to be attained. Now, 
as Christ was manifested to take away our sins, to de- 
stroy the works of the devil ; and as his blood cleanseth 
from all sin and unrighteousness, is it not evident that 
God means that believers in Christ shall be saved from 
all sin? For if his blood cleanses from all sin, if he 
destroys the works of the devil, (and sin is the work of 
the devil,) and if he who is born of God does not com- 
mit sin, then he must be cleansed from all sin ; and 
while he continues in that state he lives without sinning 
against God, for the seed of God remaineth in him, and 
he cannot sin, because he is born, or begotten, of God. 

How strangely warped and blinded by prejudice and 
system must men be who, in the face of such evidence 
as this, will still dare to maintain that no man can be 
saved from his sin in this life ; but must daily commit 
sin in thought, word, and deed, as the Westminster 
divines have asserted ! that is, every man is laid under 
the fatal necessity of sinning as many ways against God 
as the devil does through his natural wickedness and 
malice ; for even the devil himself can have no other 
way of sinning against God, except by thought, word, 
and deed. And yet, according to these and others of 
the same creed, " even the most regenerate sin against 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATrON. 197 

God as long as they live." It is a miserable salvo to 
say " they do not sin so much as they used to do ; and 
they do not sin habitually, only occasionally." Alas 
for this system ! Could not the grace that saved them 
partially save them perfectly? Could not that power 
of God that saved them from habitual sin save them 
from occasional or accidental sin ? Shall we suppose 
that sin, how potent soever it may be, is as potent as 
the Spirit and grace of Christ ? And may we not ask, 
If it was for God's glory and their good that they were 
partially saved, would it not have been more for God's 
glory and their good if they had been perfectly saved? 
But the letter and spirit of God's word, and the design 
and end of Christ's coming, is to save his people from 
their sins. 

The perfection of the gospel system is not that it 
makes allowances for sin, but that it makes an atone- 
ment for it; not that it tolerates sin, but that it de- 
stroys it. 

However inveterate the disease of sin may be, the 
grace of the Lord Jesus can fully cure it. 

God sets no bounds to the communications of his 
grace and Spirit to them that are faithful. And as 
there are no bounds to the graces, so there should be 
none to the exercise of those graces. No man can ever 
feel that he loves God too much, or that he loves man 
too much for God's sake. 

Be so purified and refined in your souls, by the in- 
dwelling Spirit, that even the light of God shining into 
your hearts shall not be able to discover a fault that the 
love of God has not purged away. 

" Be thou perfect, and thou shalt be perfections," that 
is, altogether perfect : be just such as the holy God 
would have thee to be, as the almighty God can make 
thee, and live as the all-sufficient God shall support thee ; 
for He alone who makes the soul holy can preserve it in 
holiness. Our blessed Lord appears to have these 
words pointedly in view, " Ye shall be perfect, as your 
Father who is in heaven is perfect," Matt, v, 48. But 
what does this imply ? Why, to be saved from all the 
power, the guilt, and the contamination of sin. This is 
only the negative part of salvation, but it has also a 
positive part ; to be made perfect — to be perfect as our 



198 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

Father who is in heaven is perfect, to be filled with the 
fulness of God, to have Christ dwelling continually in 
the heart by faith, and to be rooted and grounded in love. 
This is the state in which man was created ; for he was 
made in the image and likeness of God. This is the state 
from which man fell ; for he broke the command of God. 
And this is the state into which every human soul must be 
raised who would dwell with God in glory ; for Christ was 
incarnated and died to put away sin by the sacrifice of 
himself. What a glorious privilege ! And who can 
doubt the possibility of its attainment who believes in 
the omnipotent love of God, the infinite merit of the 
blood of atonement, and the all-pervading and all-purify- 
ing energy of the Holy Ghost? How many miserable 
souls employ that time to dispute and cavil against the 
possibility of being saved from their sins, which they 
should devote to praying and believing that they might 
be saved out of the hands of their enemies ! But some 
may say, " You overstrain the meaning of the term ; it 
signifies only, Be sincere ; for, as perfect obedience is 
impossible, God accepts of sincere obedience." If by 
sincerity the objection means " good desires, and gene- 
rally good purposes, with an impure heart and spotted 
life," then I assert that no such thing is implied in the 
text, nor in the original word. But if the word sincerity 
be taken in its proper and literal sense, I have no ob- 
jection to it. Sincere is compounded of sine cera, 
V without wax ;" and, applied to moral subjects, is a 
metaphor taken from clarified honey, from which every 
atom of the comb or wax is separated. Then let it be 
proclaimed from heaven, " Walk before me, and be sin- 
cere ! Purge out the old leaven, that ye may be a new 
lump unto God ; and thus ye shall be perfect, as your 
Father who is in heaven is perfect." This is sincerity. 
Reader, remember that the blood of Christ cleanseth 
from all sin. Ten thousand quibbles on insulated texts 
can never lessen, much less destroy, the merit and efficacy 
of the great atonement. 

God never gives a precept but he offers sufficient 
grace to enable thee to perform it. Believe as he 
would have thee, and act as he shall strengthen thee, 
and thou wilt believe all things savingly, and do all 
things well. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 199 

God is holy ; and this is the eternal reason why all 
his people should be holy — should be purified from all 
fiithiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in 
the fear of God. No faith in any particular creed, no 
religious observance, no acts of benevolence and charity, 
no mortification, attrition, or contrition can be a substi- 
tute for this. We must be made partakers of the divine 
nature. We must be saved from our sins — from the cor- 
ruption that is in the world, and be holy within and 
righteous without, or never see God. For this very 
purpose Jesus Christ lived, died, and revived, that he 
might purify us unto himself; that through faith in 
his blood our sins might be blotted out, and our souls 
restored to the image of God. Reader, art thou hun- 
gering and thirsting after righteousness ? Then, blessed 
art thou, for thou shalt be filled. 

God is ever ready, by the power of his Spirit, to carry 
us forward to every degree of life, light, and love, neces- 
sary to prepare us for an eternal weight of glory- There 
can be little difficulty in attaining the end of our faith, 
the salvation of our souls from all sin, if God carry us 
forward to it ; and this he will do, if we submit to be 
saved in his own way, and on his own terms. Many 
make a violent outcry against the doctrine of per- 
fection ; that is, against the heart being cleansed from 
all sin in this life, and filled with love to God and man ; 
because they judge it to be impossible ! Is it too much 
to say of these, that they know neither the Scripture nor 
the' power of God? Surely the Scripture promises the 
thing, and the power of God can carry us on to the 
possession of it. 

The object of all God's promises and dispensations 
was to bring fallen man back to the image of God, 
which he had lost. This, indeed, is the sum and sub- 
stance of the religion of Christ. We have partaken of 
an earthly, sensual, and devilish nature ; the design of 
God, by Christ, is to remove this, and to make us par- 
takers of the divine nature, and save us from all the 
corruption, in principle and fact, which is in the world. 

It is said that Enoch not only " walked with God," 
setting him always before his eyes — beginning, continu- 
ing, and ending every work to his glory — but also that 
"he pleased God," and had "the testimony that he did 



200 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

please God." Hence we learn that it was then possible 
to live so as not to offend God : consequently, so as not 
to commit sin against him, and to have the continual 
evidence or testimony that all that a man did and pur- 
posed was pleasing in the sight of Him who searches the 
heart, and by whom devices are weighed: and if it was 
possible then, it is surely, through the same grace, pos- 
sible now ; for God, and Christ, and faith are still the 
same. 

The petition, " Thy will be done in earth, as it is in 
heaven," certainly points out a deliverance from all sin; 
for nothing that is unholy can consist with the divine 
will ; and, if this be fulfilled in man, surely sin shall be 
banished from his soul. Again : the holy angels never 
mingle iniquity with their loving obedience ; and, as 
our Lord teaches us to pray that we do his will here 
as they do it in heaven, can it be thought, he would put 
a petition into our mouths the fulfilment of which was 
impossible I 

The reader is probably amazed at the paucity of large 
stars in the whole firmament of heaven. Will he permit 
me to carry his mind a little farther, and either stand 
astonished at, or deplore with me the fact that, out of 
the millions of Christians in the vicinity and splendour 
of the eternal Sun of righteousness, how very few are 
found of the first order ! How very few can stand ex- 
amination by the test laid down in 1 Cor. xiii ! How 
very few love God with all their heart, soul, mind, and 
strength, and their neighbours as themselves! How 
few mature Christians are found in the church ! How 
few are, in all things, living for eternity ! How little 
light, how little heat, and how little influence and ac- 
tivity, are to be found among them that bear the name of 
Christ! How few stars of the first magnitude will the 
Son of God have to deck the crown of his glory ! Few 
are striving to excel in righteousness ; and it seems to 
be a principal concern with many, to find out how little 
grace they may have, and yet escape hell ; how little 
conformity to the will of God they may have, and yet 
get to heaven. In the fear of God I register this testi- 
mony, that I have perceived it to be the labour of 
many to lower the standard of Christianity, and to 
soften down, or explain away, those promises of God 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— ENTIRE 6ANCTIFICATION. 201 

that himself has linked with duties ; and, because they 
know they cannot be saved by their good works, they 
are contented to have no good works at all ; and thus 
the necessity of Christian obedience, and Christian holi- 
ness, makes no prominent part of some modern creeds. 
Let all those who retain the apostolic doctrine, that the 
blood of Christ cleanse th from all sin in this life, press 
every believer to go on to perfection, and expect to be 
saved, while here below, into the fulness of the blessing 
of the gospel of Jesus. To all such my soul says, La- 
bour to show yourselves approved unto God ; workmen 
that need not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of 
truth ; and may the pleasure of the Lord prosper in your 
hands ! Amen. 

Many employ that time in brooding and mourning 
over their impure hearts, which should be spent in 
prayer and faith before God, that their impurities might 
be washed away. In what a stale of nonage are many 
members of the Christian church! 

I am afraid that what some persons call their infirmi- 
ties may rather be called their strengths ; the prevailing 
and frequently ruling power of pride, anger, ill will, &c. ; 
for how few think evil tempers to be sins ! The gentle 
term " infirmity" softens down the iniquity ; and as St. 
Paul, so great and so holy a man, say they, had his 
infirmities, how can they expect to be without theirs ? 
These should know that they are in a dangerous error ; 
that St. Paul means nothing of the kind; for he speaks 
of his sufferings, and of these alone. One word more : 
would not the grace and power of Christ appear more 
conspicuous in slaying the lion than in keeping him 
chained ? in destroving sin, root and branch, and filling 
the soul with his own holiness, with love to God and 
man, with the mind, all the holy, heavenly tempers that 
were in himself, than in leaving these impure and unholy 
tempers ever to live, and often to reign, in the heart ? 
The doctrine is discreditable to the gospel, and wholly 
Antichristian. 

"If they sin against thee, for there is no man that 
sinneth not," 1 Kings viii, 46. On this verse we may 
observe that the second clause, as it is here translated, 
renders the supposition in the first clause entirely nu- 
gatory ; for if there be no man that sinneth not, it is 

9* 



202 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

useless to say, " If they sin ;" but this contradiction is 
taken away by reference to the original, which should 
be translated, " If they shall sin against thee ;" or, 
" Should they sin against thee ; for there is no man that 
may not sin ;" that is, There is no man impeccable ; 
none infallible ; none that is not liable to transgress. 
This is the true meaning of the phrase in various parts 
of the Bible, and so our translators have understood the 
original ; for, even in the thirty-first verse of this chap- 
ter, they have translated yecheta, " If a man trespass ;" 
which certainly implies he might or might not do it; and 
in this way they have translated tb': same word, " If a 
soul sin," in Lev. v, 1 ; vi, 2 ; 1 Sam. ii, 25; 2 Chron. 
vi, 22 ; and in several other places. The truth is, the 
Hebrew has no mood to express words in the permis- 
sive or optative way ; but to express this sense, it uses 
the future tense of the conjugation kal. This text has 
been a wonderful stronghold for all who believe that 
there is no redemption from sin in this life ; that no 
man can live without committing sin ; and that we can- 
not be entirely freed from it till we die. 1. The text 
speaks no such doctrine ; it only speaks of the possibility 
of every man sinning ; and this must be true of a state 
of probation. 2. There is not another text in the divine 
records that is more to the purpose than this. 3. The 
doctrine is flatly in opposition to the design of the gos- 
pel ; for Jesus came to save his people from their sins, 
and to destroy the works of the devil. 4. It is a dan- 
gerous and destructive doctrine, and should be blotted 
out of every Christian's creed. There are too manj) 
who are seeking to excuse their crimes by all means in 
their power ; and we need not imbody their excuses in a 
creed, to complete their deception, by stating that their 
sins are unavoidable. 

The soul was made for God, and can never be united 
to him, nor be happy, till saved from sin. He who is 
saved from his sin, and united to God, possesses the 
utmost felicity that the human soul can enjoy, either in 
this or the coming world. 

Where a soul is saved from all sin, it is capable of 
being fully employed in the work of the Lord : it is then, 
and not till then, fully fitted for the Master's use. 

All who are taught of Christ are not only saved, but 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 203 

their understanding's are much improved. True religion, 
civilization, mental improvement, common sense, and 
orderly behaviour, go hand in hand. 

When the light of Christ dwells fully in the heart, it 
extends its influence to every thought, word, and action ; 
and directs its possessor how he is to act in all places 
and circumstances. 

Our souls can never be truly happy till our wills be en- 
tirely subjected to, and become one with, the will of God. 

While there is an empty, longing heart, there is a con- 
tinual overflowing fountain of salvation. If we find, in 
any place, or at any time, that the oil ceases to flow, it 
is because there are no empty vessels there ; no souls 
hungering and thirsting for righteousness. We find 
fault with the dispensations of God's mercy, and ask, 
" Why were the former days better than these ?" Were 
we as much in earnest for our salvation as our fore- 
fathers were for theirs, we should have equal supplies, 
and as much reason to sing aloud of divine mercy. 

" Be ye holy," saith the Lord, " for I am holy." He 
who can give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness 
is one who loves holiness ; who hates sin : who longs to 
be saved from it, and takes encouragement at the recol- 
lection of God's holiness, as he seeth in this the holy 
nature which he is to share, and the perfection which he 
is here to attain. But most who call themselves Chris- 
tians hate the doctrine of holiness; never hear it incul- 
cated without pain ; and the principal part of their 
studies, and those of their pastors, is to find out with 
how little holiness they can rationally expect to enter 
into the kingdom of heaven. O fatal and soul-destroy- 
ing delusion ! How long will a holy God suffer such 
abominable doctrines to pollute his church, and destroy 
the souls of men. 

Increase in the image and favour of God. Every 
grace and divine influence which ye have received is a 
seed, a heavenly seed, which, if it be watered with the 
dew of heaven from above, will endlessly increase and 
multiply itself. He who continues to believe, love r and 
obey, will grow in grace, and continually increase in the 
knowledge of Jesus Christ, as his Sacrifice, Sanctifier, 
Counsellor, Preserver, and final Saviour. The lifei>f a 
Christian is a growth : he is at first born of God, and is 



204 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

a little child : becomes a young man and a father in 
Christ. Every father was once an infant ; and, had he 
not grown, he would never have been a man. Those 
who content themselves with the grace they received 
when converted to God, are, at best, in a continual state 
of infancy ; but we find, in the order of nature, that the 
infant that does not grow, and grow daily too, is sickly, 
and soon dies : so, in the order of grace, those who do 
not grow up into Jesus Christ are sickly, and will soon 
die — die to all sense and influence of heavenly things. 
There are many who boast of the grace of their conver- 
sion ; persons who were never more than babes, and 
have long since lost even that grace, because they did 
not grow in it. Let him that readeth understand. 

In order to get a clean heart, a man must know and 
feel its depravity, acknowledge and deplore it before 
God, in order to be fully sanctified. Few are pardoned, 
because they do not feel and confess their sins ; and few 
are sanctified and cleansed from all sin, because they do 
not feel and confess their own sore and the plague of 
their hearts. As the blood of Jesus Christ, the merit of 
his passion and death, applied by faith, purges the con- 
science from all dead works, so the same cleanses the 
heart from all unrighteousness. As all unrighteousness 
is sin, so he that is cleansed from all unrighteousness is 
cleansed from all sin. To attempt to evade this, and 
plead for the continuance of sin in the heart through life, 
is ungrateful, wicked, and blasphemous ; for, as he who 
says he has not sinned makes God a liar, who has de- 
clared the contrary through every part of his revelation, 
so he that says the blood of Christ either cannot or will 
not cleanse us from all sin in this life gives also the lie 
to his Maker, who has declared the contrary, and thus 
shows that the word, the doctrine of God, is not in him. 
Reader, it is the birthright of every child of God to be 
cleansed from all sin, to keep himself unspotted from 
the world, and so to live as never more to offend his 
Maker. All things are possible to him that believeth, 
because all things are possible to the infinitely merito- 
rious blood and energetic Spirit of the Lord Jesus. 

Every man whose heart is full of the love of God is 
full of humility ; for there is no man so humble as he 
whose heart is cleansed from all sin. It has been said 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 205 

that indwelling sin humbles us ; never was there a 
greater falsity: pride is the very essence of sin; he 
who has sin has pride ; and pride, too, in proportion to 
his sin : this is a mere popish doctrine ; and, strange to 
tell, the doctrine on which their doctrine of merit is 
founded ! They say, God leaves concupiscence in the 
heart of every Christian, that, in striving with and over- 
coming it from time to time, he may have an accumula- 
tion of meritorious acts. Certain Protestants say, " It 
is a true sign of a very gracious state when a man feels 
and deplores his inbred corruption." How near do 
these come to the Papists, whose doctrine they profess 
to detest and abhor ! The truth is, it is no sign of grace 
whatever ; it only argues, as they use it, that the man 
has got light to show him his corruptions, but he has 
not yet got grace to destroy them. He is convinced 
that he should have the mind of Christ, but he feels that 
he has the mind of Satan; he deplores it; and, if his 
bad doctrine do not prevent him, he will not rest till he 
feels the blood of Christ cleansing him from all sin. 

Can any man expect to be saved from his inward sin 
in the other world ? None, except such as hold the 
popish, antiscriptural doctrine of purgatory. " But this 
deliverance is expected at death." Where is the pro- 
mise that it shall then be given 1 There is not one such 
in the whole Bible ! And to believe for a thing essen- 
tial to our glorification, without any promise to support 
that faith in reference to the point on which it is exer- 
cised, is a desperation that argues as well the absence 
of true faith as it does of right reason. Multitudes of 
such persons are continually deploring their want of 
faith, even where they have the clearest and most ex- 
plicit promises ; and yet, strange to tell, risk their sal- 
vation at the hour of death on a deliverance that is no- 
where promised in the sacred oracles! " But who has 
got this blessing?" Every one who has come to God 
in the right way for it. " Where is such a one V* Seek 
the blessing as you should do, and you will soon be 
able to answer the question. "But it is too great a 
blessing to be expected." Nothing is too great for a 
believer to expect, which God has promised, and Christ 
has purchased with his blood. "If I had such a bless- 
ing, I should not be able to retain it." All things are 



206 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

possible to him that believeth. Besides, like all other 
gifts of God, it comes with a principle of preservation 
with it; "and upon all thy glory there shall be a de- 
fence." " Still, such an unfaithful person as I cannot 
expect it." Perhaps the infidelity you deplore came 
through the want of this blessing: and as to worthless- 
ness, no soul under heaven deserves the least of God's 
mercies. It is not for thy worthiness that he has given 
thee any thing, but for the sake of his Son. You can 
say, "When I felt myself a sinner, sinking into perdi- 
tion, I did then flee to the atoning blood, and found par- 
don : but this sanctitication is a far greater work." — 
No ; speaking after the manner of men, justification is 
far greater than sanctification. When thou wert a sin- 
ner, ungodly, an enemy in thy mind by wicked works, 
a child of the devil, an heir of hell, God pardoned thee 
on thy casting thy soul on the merit of the great sacri- 
ficial Offering: thy sentence was reversed, thy state was 
changed, thou wert put among the children, and God's 
Spirit witnessed with thine that thou wert his child. 
What a change ! and what a blessing ! What then is 
this complete sanctification ? It is the cleansing of the 
blood that has not been cleansed ; it is washing the 
soul of a true believer from the remains of sin ; it is the 
making one who is already a child of God more holy* 
that he may be more happy, more useful in the world, 
and bring more glory to his heavenly Father. Great as 
this work is, how little, humanly speaking, is it when 
compared with what God has already done for thee ! 
But suppose it were ten thousand times greater, is any 
thing too hard for God ? Are not all things possible to 
him that believes? And does not the blood of Christ 
cleanse from all unrighteousness ? Arise, then, and be 
baptized with a greater effusion of the Holy Ghost, and 
wash away thy sin, calling on the name of the Lord. 

Art thou weary of that carnal mind which is enmity 
to God? Canst thou be happy while thou art unholy? 
Dost thou know any thing of God's love to thee? Dost 
thou not know that he has given his Son to die for thee ? 
Dost thou love him in return for his love? Hast thou 
even a little love to him? And canst thou love him a 
little, without desiring to love him more? Dost thou 
not feel that thy happiness grows in proportion to thy 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION, 207 

love and subjection to him ? Dost thou not wish to be 
happy ? And dost thou not know that holiness and 
happiness are as inseparable as sin and misery? Canst 
thou have too much happiness or too much holiness ? 
Canst thou be made holy and happy too soon ? Art 
thou not weary of a sinful heart ? Are not thy bad tem- 
pers, pride, anger, peevishness, fretfulness, covetous- 
ness, and the various unholy passions that too often 
agitate thy soul, a source of misery and wo to thee 1 
And canst thou be unwilling to have them destroyed ? 
Arise, then, and shake thyself from the dust, and call 
upon thy God ! His ear is not heavy that it cannot 
hear: his hand is not shortened that it cannot save. 
Behold, now is the accepted time ! Now is the day of 
salvation ! It was necessary that Jesus Christ should 
die for thee, that thou mightest be saved ; but he gave 
up his life for thee eighteen hundred years ago ! and 
himself invites thee to come, for all things are now 
ready. Such is the nature of God that he cannot be 
more willing to save thee in any future time than he is 
now. He wills that thou shouldst love him now with 
all thy heart; but he knows that thou canst not thus 
love him till the enmity of the carnal mind is removed ; 
and this he is willing this moment to destroy. The 
power of the Lord is therefore present to heal. Turn 
from every sin ; give up every idol ; cut off every right 
hand ; pluck out every right eye. Be willing to part 
with thy enemies that thou mayest receive thy chief 
friend. Thy day is far spent, the night is at hand, the 
graves are ready for thee, and here thou hast no abiding 
city. A month, a week, a day, an hour, yea, even a 
moment, may send thee into eternity. And if thou die 
in thy sins, where God is thou shalt never come. Do 
not expect redemption in death : it can do nothing for 
thee even under the best consideration : it is thy last 
enemy. Remember then that nothing but the blood of 
Jesus can cleanse thee from all unrighteousness. Lay 
hold, therefore, on the hope that is set before thee. 
The gate may appear strait; but strive, and thou shalt 
pass through ! " Come unto me," says Jesus. Hear 
his voice, believe at all risks, and struggle into God. 
Amen and Amen ! 

In no part of the Scriptures are we directed to seek 



P.08 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY ENTIRE SANCTIFICATION. 

holiness gradatim. We are to come to God as well for 
an instantaneous and complete purification from all sin, 
as for an instantaneous pardon. Neither the seriatim 
pardon, nor the gradatim purification, exists in the 
Bible. It is when the soul is purified from all sin that 
it can properly grow in grace, and in the knowledge of 
our Lord Jesus Christ : — as the field may be expected 
to produce a good crop, and all the seed vegetate, when 
the thorns, thistles, briers, and noxious weeds of every 
kind are grubbed out of it. 

From every view of the subject, it appears that the 
blessing of a clean heart, and the happiness consequent 
on it, may be obtained in this life ; because here, not in 
the future world, are we to be saved. Whenever, there- 
fore, such blessings are offered, they may be received : 
but all the graces and blessings of the gospel are offered 
at all times ; and when they are offered, they may be 
received. Every sinner is exhorted to turn from the 
evil of his way, to repent of sin, and supplicate the 
throne of grace for pardon. In the same moment in 
which he is commanded to turn, in that moment he may 
and should return. He does not receive the exhortation 
to repentance to-day that he may become a penitent at 
some future time. Every penitent is exhorted to believe 
on the Lord Jesus that he may receive remission of 
sins : — he does not, he cannot understand that the bless- 
ing thus promised is not to be received to-day, but at 
some future time. In like manner, to every believer 
the new heart and the right spirit are offered in the 
present moment ; that they may, in that moment, be 
received. For as the work of cleansing and renewing 
the heart is the work of God, his almighty power can 
perform it in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. 
And as it is this moment our duty to love God with 
all our heart, and we cannot do this till he cleanse our 
hearts, consequently he is ready to do it this moment, 
because he wills that we should in this moment love 
him. Therefore we may justly say, " Now is the ac- 
cepted time, now is the day of salvation." He who in 
the beginning caused light in a moment to shine out 
of darkness, can in a moment shine into our hearts, 
and give us to see the light of his glory in the face 
of Jesus Christ. This moment, therefore, we may be 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE MORAL LAW. 209 

emptied of sin, filled with holiness, and become truly 
happy. 

Such cleansed people never forget the horrible pit 
and miry clay out of which they have been brought. 
And can they then be proud ? No ! they loathe them- 
selves in their own sight. They can never forgive them- 
selves for having sinned against so good a God and so 
loving a Saviour. And can they undervalue Him by 
whose blood they were bought, and by whose blood 
they were cleansed ? No ! That is impossible : they 
now see Jesus as they ought to see him ; they see him 
in his splendour, because they feel him in his victory 
and triumph over sin. To them that thus believe he is 
precious ; and he was never so precious as now. As 
to their not needing him when thus saved from their 
sins, we may as well say, As soon may the creation not 
need the sustaining hand of God, because the works 
are finished ! Learn this, that as it requires the same 
power to sustain creation as to produce it ; so it requires 
the same Jesus who cleansed to keep clean. They feel 
that it is only through his continued indwelling that they 
are kept holy, and happy, and useful. Were he to leave 
them, the original darkness and kingdom of death would 
soon be restored. 



XIII.— THE MORAL LAW. 

The giving of the law on Mount Sinai was the most 
solemn transaction which ever took place between God 
and man : and, therefore, it is introduced in the most 
solemn manner. In the morning of that day in which 
this law was given, (which many learned chronologists 
suppose to have been May 30, in the year of the world 
2513, before the incarnation 1491, that day being the 
pentecost,) the presence of Jehovah became manifest by 
thunders and lightnings, — a dense cloud on the mount- 
ain, — and a terrific blast of a trumpet, — so that the whole 
assembly were struck with terror and dismay. Shortly 
after, the whole mount appeared on fire ; columns of 
smoke arose from it as the smoke of a furnace; and an 
earthquake shook it from top to base ; the trumpet con- 
tinued to sound, and the blast grew longer, and louder 
and louder. Then Jehovah, the sovereign Lawgiver, 



210 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE MORAL LAW. 

came down upon the mount, and called Moses to ascend 
to the top, where, previously to his delivering this law, 
he gave him directions concerning the sanctirication of 
the people. 

There are two points of view under which this law 
of God appears both singular and important: 

1. It is the most ancient code or system of law ever 
given to man. 

2. It was written in alphabetical characters invented 
by God himself; as it is most probable that, previously 
to this, no such characters had been known in the world. 

THE FIRST COMMANDMENT. 

Against mental and theoretical idolatry. — We must 
not attempt to form conceptions of the supreme Being 
as if confined to form, to any kind of limits, to any par- 
ticular space or place. As Jehovah, he is in every 
respect inconceivable : no mind can grasp him ; he is 
an infinite Spirit ; equally in every place, and in all 
points of duration. 

The divine Being we must sanctify in our hearts : — 
that is, we must separate all transitory, material, and, 
particularly, earthly things, from the notion we form of 
him. 

This commandment also forbids all inordinate attach- 
ment to earthly and sensible things : — that is, things that 
are the objects of our senses, and for the possession of 
which our appetites and affections are intensely occupied. 

THE SECOND COMMANDMENT. 

Against making and worshipping images. — Image 
worship is a positive breach of this command. It at- 
tempts to humanize God, and rills the miserable idola- 
ter with the opinion that God is like to himself, if not 
altogether so : and image worshippers in general have 
no other idea of God than that of a gigantic man, of 
amazing dimensions, of vast strength, wisdom, and 
skill ; — no other kind of being having any such strength 
or wisdom. Hence, among the Roman Catholics, God 
is represented as a very grave, venerable old man, with 
a triple crown, (which, however, their popes borrow,) 
to signify his sovereignty over heaven, earth, and hell ; 
angels, men, and devils, being subject to him. Ail 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE MORAL LAW. 211 

these, as well as the triple crown, their symbol, have the 
popes of Rome, by their doctrines, traditions, and pre- 
tensions, arrogated to themselves. They have the 
keys of both worlds ; they open, and no man shutteth ; 
they shut, and no man openeth ! It is a matter of the 
highest astonishment that the blasphemous pretensions 
of these individuals should have been acknowledged, 
and conceded to them, for so long a time, by all the 
powers of Europe ! They have raised up and put down 
emperors and kings at pleasure ; have absolved, as in a 
moment, all their officers and subjects from the most 
solemn oaths of allegiance, and their obligations of 
obedience : — and for all this, they have given them 
indulgences, purgatory, transubstantiation, image wor- 
ship, worship of the Virgin Mary, as queen of heaven ; 
saints and angels as mediators and intercessors ; prayers 
for the dead, and uncertain and contradictory traditions 
in place of the Bible ! All these must be received on 
their authority ; and he who disputes their authenticity 
is a heretic : that is, one that the Church of Rome 
orders to be burned alive : and those who reject their 
authority incur the divine displeasure, and, if not recon- 
ciled to them and their church, shall be banished from 
the presence of God, and the glory of his power, to all 
eternity ! What blasphemous pretensions ! what gross 
idolatry ! 

This commandment is also directed against the idola- 
try of Egypt, and against all idolatry, whether found 
among the savage tribes in North America ; the wor- 
shippers of the visible heavens in China ; the devotees 
of Brahma, Siva, and Mahadeo in Hindostan ; the fol- 
lowers of Budhoo in Ceylon, and Java, and Ava ; or the 
corrupt Christians in the Church of Rome. 

THE THIRD COMMANDMENT. 

Against false swearing, blasphemy, and irreverent 
use of the name of God. — This precept not only forbids 
all false oaths, but all common swearing, where the 
name of God is used, or where he is appealed to as a 
witness of the truth. It also necessarily forbids all light 
and irreverent mention of God, or any of his attributes ; 
and we may safely add, that every prayer, ejaculation, 
and supplication, that is not accompanied with deep 



212 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE MORAL LAW. 

reverence, and the genuine spirit of piety, is here con- 
demned also. So, also, is the wicked mode of turning 
the name of God, of the throne of his glory, into inter- 
jections, and words to express surprise, wonder, amaze- 
ment, &,c. : as, "OGocl! O Lord ! O heavens ! Good 
God ! O my God !" &c, &c. ; when it is evident, from 
the character of the persons, their habits, the nature of 
the circumstances in which they then were, that their 
souls were as truly without the fear of God as their 
tongues were without respect to the company or reve- 
rence of their Maker. 

But the command may be and is broken in thousands 
of instances, in the prayers, whether read or offered ex- 
tempore, of inconsiderate, bold, and presumptuous wor- 
shippers. Were every blasphemer among us to be 
stoned to death, how many of the people would fall in 
every corner of the land ! God is long suffering ; may 
this lead them to repentance ! We have excellent laws 
against all profaneness, but alas for our country ! they 
are not enforced ; and he who attempts to put the laws 
in force against profane swearers, &.c, is considered a 
litigious man, and a disturber of the peace of society. 
Will not God visit for these things ? This is not only 
contempt of God's holy word and commandments, but 
rebellion against the law. 

A common swearer is constantly perjuring himself. 
Such a person should never be trusted. 

The best way is to have as little to do as possible 
with oaths. An oath will not bind a knave or a liar ; 
and an honest man needs none, for his character and 
conduct swear for him. 

He who uses any oath except what he is solemnly 
called by the magistrate to make, so far from being a 
Christian, does not deserve the reputation either of 
decency or common sense. 

THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT. 

Against profanation of the Sabbath, and idleness on 
the other days of the week. — " Remember the Sabbath 
day to keep it holy." As this was the most ancient 
institution, God calls upon them to remember it. As if 
he had said, " Do not forget that when I had finished 
the creation of the heavens and the earth, and all that 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV — THE MORAL LAW. 213 

is in them, I instituted the Sabbath ; and remember why 
I did so, and for what purposes." 

The word shabath signifies " he rested," and hence 
shabath, or " sabbath," the seventh day, or the day of 
rest, or rest simply. " In six days God created the 
heavens and the earth, and rested," that is, ceased to 
create, " on the seventh day ;" and has consecrated it as 
a day of rest for man ; rest to the body from labour and 
toil ; and rest to the soul from all worldly cares and 
anxieties. He who labours with his mind on the Sab- 
bath day is as culpable as he who labours with his 
hands in his ordinary calling - . It is by the authority of 
God, that the Sabbath is set apart for rest and religious 
purposes, as the six days of the week are appointed for 
labour. How wise is this provision ! How gracious 
this command ! It is essentially necessary not only to 
the body of man, but to all the animals employed in his 
service. Take this away, and the labour is too great ; 
both man and beast would fail under it. Without this 
consecrated day, religion itself would fail ; and the 
human mind, becoming sensualized, would soon forget 
its origin and end. 

Even as a political regulation, it is one of the wisest 
and most beneficent in its effects of any ever instituted. 
Those who habitually disregard its moral obligation are 
to a man not only good for nothing, but are wretched in 
themselves, a curse to society, and often end their lives 
miserably. The idler is next to the Sabbath-breaker. As 
God has formed both the body and mind of man on prin- 
ciples of activity, so he designed him proper employ- 
ment : and it is his decree, that the mind shall improve 
by exercise, and the body find increase of vigour and 
health in honest labour. He who idles away his time 
on the six days is equally culpable in the sight of God 
as he who works on the seventh. The idle person is 
ordinarily clothed in rags ; and it has ever been re- 
marked in all Christian countries that Sabbath-breakers 
generally come to an ignominious death. 

The appointment of the Sabbath is the first command 
ever given to man: and that the sanctification of it was 
of great consequence in the sight of God, we may learn 
from the various repetitions of this law ; and we may 
observe that it has still for its object not only the 



214 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— THE MORAL LAW. 

benefit of the soul, but the health and comfort of the 
body also. 

Because this commandment has not been particularly 
mentioned in the New Testament, as a moral precept 
binding on all, therefore some have presumptuously 
inferred that there is no Sabbath under the Christian 
dispensation. Were there none, Christianity itself 
would soon become extinct, and religion would soon 
have an end. But why is not the moral obligation of it 
insisted on by our Lord and the apostles ? They have 
sufficiently insisted on it ; they all kept it sacred, and so 
invariably did all the primitive Christians ; though some 
observed the last day of the week, the Jewish Sabbath, 
instead of the first day, in commemoration not only of 
God's resting from his work of creation, but also of the 
resurrection of Christ from the dead. But to insist on 
the necessity of observing it was not requisite, because 
none doubted of its moral obligation ; the question itself 
had never been disturbed ; not so with circumcision and 
other Mosaic rites. The truth is, it is considered as a 
type — all types are of full force till the things signified 
by them take place : — but the thing signified by the 
Sabbath is that rest in glory which remains for the 
people of God ; and in this light it evidently appears to 
have been considered by the apostle, Heb. iv. As, 
therefore, the antitype remains, the moral obligation of 
the Sabbath must continue till time be swallowed up in 
eternity. The world was never without a Sabbath, and 
never will be. And there is scarcely a people on the 
face of the earth, whether civilized or uncivilized, that 
has not agreed in the propriety of having a Sabbath, or 
something analogous to it ; but it has been objected 
that the Sabbath could be only of partial obligation, and 
affect those only whose day and night were divisible 
into twenty-four hours ; and would never be intended 
to apply to the inhabitants of either of the polar re- 
gions, where their days and nights aJternately consist of 
several months each. This objection is very slight. 
The object of the divine Being is evidently to cause 
men to apply the seventh part of time to rest ; and this 
may be as easily done at Spitzbergen as at any place 
under the equator. Nor is it of particular consequence 
when a nation or people may begin their Sabbath 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE MORAL LAW. 215 

observances ; — whether it fall in with our, or the Jewish, 
or even the Mohammedan Sabbath, provided they con- 
tinue regular in the observance, and hallow to religious 
uses this seventh part of time. 

In his mercy the divine Being has limited our labour 
to six da}*s out of seven. In order to destroy the insti- 
tution of God, the " French National Assembly" divided 
time into decades, and ordered every tenth day to be 
kept as a day of relaxation, dissipation, and merriment. 
The offended God wrought no miracle to bring back his 
institution; but, in the course of his providence, he 
annihilated them and their devices, and restored the 
Sabbath, in spite of legislative enactments to the con- 
trary ; and the people, bad as they were, rejoiced to be 
put in possession of the Sabbath which God had conse- 
crated to rest and religious uses from the foundation of 
the world. 

But let us remember, as before noted, that while we 
rest on the Sabbath we do not idle away the other six 
days. The Lord commands, "Six days shalt thou 
labour, and do all thy work," Exod. xx, 9. Therefore, 
it has been justly observed that he who idles away time 
on the six days is equally guilty before God as he who 
does his ordinary work on the Sabbath. An idle per- 
son, though able to discourse like an angel, or pray like 
an apostle, cannot be a Christian; all such are hypo- 
crites and deceivers ; the true members of the church 
of Christ walk, work, and labour. 

No work should be done on the Sabbath that can be 
done on the preceding day, or can be deferred to the 
ensuing week. Works of absolute necessity and mercy 
are alone excepted. He who works by his servants or 
cattle is equally guilty as if he worked himself; for God 
has commanded that both the cattle and the male and 
female servants shall rest also. Yea, the slave himself 
is included ; for so the original word often signifies. 
But in what a state of moral depravity must those slave- 
holders be, who reduce their slaves to such a state of 
wretchedness that they allow them only the Sabbath 
day to cultivate those grounds from which they are to 
derive their subsistence ; having no food allowed them 
but what they are able to bring out of the earth on that 
day in which the supreme Lord has commanded their 



-16 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE MORAL LAW. 

masters to give them rest, and to require no manner of 
labour from them. Such enemies to God must expect 
no common judgment from the justice of the Most High, 
whatsoever countries they may inhabit. 

Where men are unmerciful to their own species, no 
wonder that they have no feeling for the beasts that 
perish. Hiring out horses, &,c, for pleasure or busi- 
ness, going on journeys, paying worldly visits, or taking 
jaunts on the Lord's day, are breaches of this law. 
"Doth God care for oxen?" Yes, and he mentions 
them with tenderness : " that thine ox and thine ass 
may rest." How criminal to employ the labouring cat- 
tle on the Sabbath, as well as on the other days of the 
week ! In stage coaches, and on canals, horses are in 
continual labour. In general there is" no Sabbath ob- 
served by the proprietors of those vehicles. Yet so 
tender and scrupulous are some proprietors, that they 
will not, on any account, do any of these things them- 
selves ; but they can be shareholders in stage coaches, 
wagons, canal boats, &c, &c, where the Sabbath is 
constantly profaned, and from which they derive an 
annual profit ! Good souls ! ye would not do these 
things yourselves ; you only hire other persons to do 
them, and you live by the profit ! Take heed that you 
enter all these things punctually in your leger, for the 
day is at hand in which you must render a strict account. 
More cattle are destroyed in England than in any other 
part of the world, in proportion, by continual labour. 
The noble horse in general has no Sabbath. Does God 
look on this with an indifferent eye ? Surely he does 
not. "England," said a foreigner, "is the paradise of 
women, the purgatory of servants, and the hell of 
horses." 

On this head, I conclude with, Reader, remember 
that thou keep holy the Sabbath day : thou needest the 
rest of it for thy body ; and the religious ordinances of it 
for thy soul God has hallowed it for these purposes : 
observe it as thou oughtest, and it will bring health to 
thy body, and peace to thy mind. So be it ! Amen. 

THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT. 

See the chapter Parents and Children. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE MORAL LAW. 217 



THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT. 

Against murder and cruelty. — God is the Fountain 
and Author of life. No creature can give life to another: 
an archangel cannot give life to an angel ; an angel can- 
not give life to man ;- man cannot give life even to the 
meanest of the brute creation. As God alone gives life, 
so he alone has the right to take it away ; and he who, 
without the authority of God, takes away life, is pro- 
perly a murderer. This commandment, which is gene- 
ral, prohibits murder of every kind : — 

All actions by which the life of our fellow creatures 
may be suddenly taken away or abridged. 

All wars for extending empire, commerce, &c. 

All sanguinary laws, by the operation of which the 
lives of men may be taken away for offences of com- 
paratively trifling demerit. 

All bad dispositions which lead men to wish evil to, 
or meditate mischief against, each other ; for the Scrip- 
ture says, " He that hateth his brother in his heart is a 
murderer." 

All want of charity and humanity to the helpless and 
distressed ; for he who has it in his power to save the 
life of another, by a timely application of succour, food, 
raiment, medicine, fee, and does not do it, and the life 
of the person either falls or is abridged on this account, 
he is in the sight of God a murderer. He who neglects 
to save life is, according to an incontrovertible maxim 
in law, the same as he who takes it away. 

All who, by immoderate and superstitious fastings, 
macerations of the body, and wilful neglect of health, 
destroy or abridge life, are murderers ; whatever a false 
religion and ignorant superstitious priests may say of 
them, God will not have murder for sacrifice. 

All duellists are murderers, almost the worst of mur- 
derers ; each meets the other with the design of killing 
him. He who shoots his antagonist dead is a murderer ; 
he who is shot is a murderer also. The surviver should 
be hanged ; the slain should be buried at a crossway, 
and the hanged murderer laid by his side. 

All who put an end to their own lives by hemp, steel, 
poison, drowning, &,c, are murderers, whatever coro- 

10 



218 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE MORAL LAW. 

tiers' inquests may say of them ; unless it be clearly 
proved that the deceased was radically insane. 

All who are addicted to riot and excess, to drunken- 
ness and gluttony, to extravagant pleasures, to inactivity 
and slothiulness ; in short and in sum, all who are influ- 
enced by indolence, intemperance, and disorderly pas- 
sions, by which life is prostrated and abridged, are 
murderers. 

A man who is full of fierce and furious passions, who 
has no command of his own temper, may in a moment 
destroy the life even of his friend, his wife, or his child. 
All such fell and ferocious men .are murderers ; they 
ever carry about with them the murderous propensity, 
and are not praying to God to subdue and destroy it. 

A vindictive man excludes himself from all hope of 
eternal life, and himself seals his own damnation. 

Malice and envy are never idle, they incessantly hunt 
the person they intend to make their prey. 

Reader, hast thou a child or servant who has offended 
thee, and humbly asks forgiveness ? Hast thou a debtor 
or a tenant who is insolvent, and asks for a little longer 
time ? And hast thou not forgiven that child or servant? 
Hast thou not given time to that debtor or tenant ? 
How, then, canst thou ever expect to see the face of 
the just and merciful God ? Thy child is banished or 
kept at a distance ; thy debtor is cast into prison, or thy 
tenant sold up ; yet the child offered to fall at thy feet ; 
and the debtor or tenant, utterly insolvent, prayed for a 
little longer time, hoping God would enable him to pay 
thee all ; but to these things thy stony heart and seared 
conscience paid no regard ! O monster of ingratitude ! 
Scandal to human nature, and reproach to God! If thou 
canst, go hide thyself, even in hell, from the face of the 
Lord ! 

THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT. 

Against adultery, fornication, and uncleanness. — 
One principal part of the criminality of adultery con- 
sists in its injustice : — 1. It robs a man of his right, by 
depriving him of the affection of his wife ; 2. It does 
him a wrong, by fathering on him, and obliging him to 
maintain as his own, a spurious offspring, a child which 
is not his. The act itself, and every thing leading to 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE MORAL LAW, 219 

the act, are here prohibited ; and also fornication, as well 
as all impure books, songs, paintings, &c, which tend 
to inflame and debauch the mind. 

THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT. 

Against stealing and dishonesty. — All rapine and 
theft are here forbidden ; as well national and com- 
mercial wrongs, as petty larceny, highway robberies, 
house-breaking, private stealing, knavery, cheating, and 
frauds of every kind : also, the taking advantage of a 
buyer's or seller's ignorance, to give the one less, and 
make the other pay more for a commodity than it is 
worth, is a breach of this sacred law. All withholding 
of rights, and doing of wrongs, are against the spirit 
of it. 

But the word is principally applicable to clandestine 
stealing ; though it may undoubtedly include all political 
injustice and private wrongs : and, consequently, all 
kidnapping, crimping, and slave-dealing are prohibited 
here, whether practised by individuals, the state, or its 
colonies. I greatly doubt whether the impress service 
stands clear here. Crimes are not lessened in their 
demerit by the number or political importance of those 
who commit them. A state that enacts bad laws is as 
criminal before God as the individual who breaks good 
ones. 

Stealing, overreaching, defrauding, purloining, &c, 
are consistent with no kind of religion that acknow- 
ledges the true God. If Christianity does not make men 
honest, it does nothing for them. Those who are not 
saved from dishonesty, fear not God, though they may 
dread man. 

No man, from what is called a principle of charity or 
generosity, should give that in alms which belongs to 
his creditors. Generosity is godlike; but justice has 
ever, both in law and gospel, the first claim. 

I have known many decent, respectable people, who 
feared a lie and trembled at an oath, who, when brought 
either by failure of trade, sudden fall of some article of 
commerce, speculation in business, through the hope of 
what they considered honest gain, by which they might 
be enabled to pay every man his due, — were led to 
forge bills — borrow money — impose upon even their 



220 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE MORAL LAW. 

own relations — cover one bad bill with another as bad, 
hoping that ere the time of payment they might, by the 
speculations or promises that were still in abeyance, be 
able to pay every one his due. Reader, if thou be a 
man in business or trade, and art about to be straitened 
in thy circumstances, pray most fervently to God that 
thou mayest not fall into abject poverty, lest thou com- 
plete thy wretchedness by lying, cheating, false pro- 
mising, false swearing, and other dirty acts ; by which 
many, once respectable, honest, and upright, have been 
drowned in destruction of property, and perdition of 
character and life ; and so the Lord have mercy on thy 
soul ! 

Among all thieves and knaves, he is the most execrable 
who endeavours to rob another of his character, that he 
may enhance his own ; lessening his neighbour, that he 
may aggrandize himself. This is that pest of society 
who is full of kind assertions tagged with huts. "He is 
a good kind of man ; but — every bean has its black ! 
Such a one is very friendly ; but — it is in his own way ! 
My neighbour N. can be very liberal ; but — you must 
catch him in the humour." Persons like these speak 
well of their neighbours, merely that they may have 
the opportunity to neutralize all their commendations, 
and make them suspected whose character stood de- 
servedly fair, "before the traducer began to pilfer his 
property. He who repents not for these injuries, and 
does not make restoration, if possible, to his defrauded 
neighbour, will hear, when God comes to take away his 
soul, these words, more terrible than the knell of death: 
" Thou shalt not steal." 

A man, for instance, of a good character, is reported 
to have done something evil ; the tale is spread, and 
the slanderers, whisperers, and backbiters carry it about: 
and thus the man is stripped of his fair character, of 
his clothing of righteousness, truth, and honesty. And 
yet the whole report may be false ; or the person, in an 
hour of the power of darkness, may have been tempted 
and overcome ; may have been wounded in the cloudy 
and dark day ; and now deeply mourns his fall before 
God ! Who that has not the heart of a demon would 
not strive rather to cover than to make bare the fault 
in such circumstances ! Those who, as the proverb 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV — THE MORAL LAW. 221 

says, " Feed like the flies, passing over all a man's 
whole parts to light upon his sores," will take up the 
tale and carry it about. Such, in the course of their 
diabolic work, carry the story of scandal, among others, 
to the righteous man ; to him who loves his God and 
his neighbour: but what reception has the tale-bearer? 
The good man taketh it not up, he will not bear it ; it 
shall not be propagated by or from him. He cannot 
prevent the detracter from laying it down ; but it is in 
his power not to take it up : and thus the progress of 
the slander may be arrested. " He taketh not up a 
reproach against his neighbour ; and, by this means, 
the tale-bearer may be discouraged from bearing it to 
another door. If there were no takers up of defama- 
tion, there would be fewer detracters in the land. If 
there were no receivers of stolen goods, there would be 
no thieves. And hence another proverb, founded on 
the justest principle, " The receiver is as bad as the 
thief." And is not the whisperer, the backbiter, and 
the tale-bearer the worst of thieves ? robbing not only 
individuals, but whole families, of their reputation ! 
scattering firebrands, arrows, and death ! Yes, they 
are the worst of felons. O, how many a fair fame has 
been tarnished by this most Satanic practice ! But, bad 
as the accidental retailer of calumny is, he who makes 
it his business to go about to collect stories of scandal, 
and who endeavours to have vouchers for his calumnies, 
is yet worse ; whether the stories be true or false, whe- 
ther they make the simple relation, or exaggerate the 
fact, — whether they present a simple lens, through which 
to view the character they exhibit, or an anamorphosis 
by which every feature is distorted, so that, in a mon- 
strosity of appearance, every trait or similitude of good- 
ness is lost: and then the reporter himself takes advan- 
tage of his own inferences, " O, sir, how bad is this ! 
But — but, there is worse behind." This insinuation is 
like a drag-net, gathering as it goes, and bringing every 
thing into its vortex : the good and the bad are found in 
one indiscriminate assembly. 

Suppose the stories to be true, or founded in truth, 
what benefit does society or the church ever derive from 
this underhand detailing? None. There are but few 
cases ever occurring, where the misunderstanding 



222 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE MORAL LAW. 

between the members of the church of Christ should be 
brought before two witnesses, much less before the 
church : but there are some such, and our Lord orders 
ns to treat these with the greatest caution and for 
bearance. 

All the above, with the whole family of defamers, 
false accusers, calumniators, detracters, destroyers of 
the good reputation of others, traducers, and libellers, 
however they may rank here, shall have one lot in the 
eternal world; none of them shall become residents on 
the hill of God's holiness ; and should not here be per- 
mitted to sojourn in his tabernacle, or militant church. 
Header, pray God to save thee from the spirit and con- 
duct of these bad men ; have no communion with them, 
drive them from thy door, yet labour to convert them 
if thou canst. But if they will still continue as disturb- 
ers of the peace of society, of the harmony of families, 
and of the union of Christ's church, let them be to thee 
as heathen men and publicans ; the basest, the lower- 
most, the most dejected, most underfoot, and down- 
trodden vassals of perdition. 

There are busybodies, impertinent meddlers with 
other people's business ; prying into other people's 
circumstances and domestic affairs ; magnifying or mi- 
nifying, mistaking or underrating, everything; news- 
mongers and telltales ; an abominable race, the curse 
of every neighbourhood where they live, and a pest to 
religious society. 

Do not open your ear to the tale-bearer, to the slan- 
derer, who comes to you with accusations against your 
brethren, or with surmisings and evil speakings. These 
are human devils; they may be the means of making 
you angry, even without any solid pretence ; therefore 
give them no place, that you may not be angry at any 
time. But if, unhappily, you should be overtaken in 
this fault, let not the sun go down upon your wrath ; 
go to your brother, against whom you have found your 
spirit irritated, tell him what you have heard, and what 
you fear ; let your ears be open to receive his own 
account; carefully listen to his own explanation; and, 
if possible, let the matter be finally settled, that Satan 
may not gain advantage over either. 

The grand maxim of the Roman law and government, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE MORAL LAW. 223 

to condemn no man unheard, and to confront the ac- 
cusers with the accused, should be a sacred maxim with 
every magistrate and minister, and among all private 
Christians. How many harsh judgments and uncha- 
ritable censures would this prevent ! Conscientiously 
practised in all Christian societies, detraction, calumny, 
tale-bearing, whispering, backbiting, misunderstandings, 
with every unbrotherly affection, would be necessarily 
banished from the church of God. 

THE NINTH COMMANDMENT. 

Against false testimony, perjury, lying, and 
deceit. — Not only false oaths to deprive a man of his 
life or of his right, are here prohibited ; but also all 
whispering, tale-bearing, calumny, and slander, where 
the object is to bring the neighbour to pain, loss, or 
punishment. In a word, whatever is deposed as a truth, 
which is false in fact, and tends to injure another in his 
body, goods, or influence, is against the spirit and letter 
of this law. 

What is a lie? It is any action done or word spoken, 
whether true or false in itself, which the doer or speaker 
wishes the observer or hearer to take in a contrary sense 
to that which he knows to be true. It is, in a word, 
any action done or speech delivered with the intention 
to deceive, though both may be absolutely true and right 
in themselves. 

Do not deceive each other ; speak the truth in all 
your dealings ; do not say, " My goods are so, and so," 
when you know them to be otherwise ; do not under- 
value the goods of your neighbour when your conscience 
tells you that you are not speaking the truth. "It is 
naught, it is naught, saith the buyer ; but afterward he 
boasteth ;" that is, he underrates his neighbour's pro- 
perty till he gets him persuaded to part with it for less 
than it is worth ; and when he has thus got it, he boasts 
what a good bargain he has made. Such a knave speaks 
not truth with his neighbour. 

A liar has always some suspicion that his testimony 
is not credited, for he is conscious to his own falsity, 
and is therefore naturally led to support his assertions 
by oaths. 

To pretend much love and affection for those for 



224 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE MORAL LAW. 

whom we have neither ; to use toward them compli- 
mentary phrases, to which we affix no meaning, but 
that they mean nothing, is highly offensive in the sight 
of that God by whom actions are weighed and words 
judged. 

THE TENTH COMMANDMENT. 

Against covetousness. — The covetousness which is 
placed on forbidden objects is that which is here pro- 
hibited and condemned. To covet in this sense is in- 
tensely to long after, in order to enjoy, as a property, the 
person or thing coveted. He breaks this commandment 
who by any means endeavours to deprive a man of his 
house, or farm, by some underhand and clandestine 
bargain with the original landlord ; what is called, in 
some countries, " taking a man's house and farm over 
his head." He breaks it, also, who lusts after his neigh- 
bour's wife, and endeavours to ingratiate himself into 
her affections by striving to lessen her husband in her 
esteem : and he also breaks it who endeavours to pos- 
sess himself of the servants, cattle, &c, of another, in 
any clandestine or unjustifiable manner. 

By covetousness many lives and many souls have been 
destroyed ; and yet the living lay it not to heart ! Who 
fears the love of money, provided he can get riches? 
Through the intensity of this desire, every part of the 
surface of the earth, and, as far as possible, its bowels, 
are ransacked to get wealth ; and God alone can tell, 
who sees all things, to how many private crimes, frauds, 
and dissimulations, this gives birth ; by which the wrath 
of God is brought down upon the community at large ! 
Who is an enemy to his country ? The sinner against 
his God. An open foe may be resisted and repelled, 
because he is known ; but the covetous man, who, as 
far as his personal safety will admit, is outraging all 
the requisitions of justice, is an unseen pestilence, sow- 
ing the seeds of desolation and ruin in society. Achan's 
covetousness, which led him to break the law of God, 
had nearly proved the destruction of the Israelitish 
camp; nor would the Lord turn away from his dis- 
pleasure till the evil was detected, and the criminal 
punished. 

The spirit of covetousness cancels all bonds and obli- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV THE MORAL LAW 225 

gations, makes wrong right, and cares nothing for father 
or brother. 

A covetous man is, in effect, and in the sight of God, 
a murderer: he wishes to get all the gain that can 
accrue to any or all who are in the same business that 
he follows ; no matter to him how many families starve 
in consequence. This is the very case with him who 
sets up shop after shop in different parts of the same 
town or neighbourhood, in which he carries on the same 
business, and endeavours to undersell others in the same 
trade, that he may get ail into his own hand. 

How apt are men to decry the goods they wish to 
purchase, in order that they may get them at a cheaper 
rate ; and when they have made their bargain, and car- 
ried it off, boast to others at how much less than its 
value they have received it ! Are such honest men ? Is 
such knavery actionable ? Can such be punished only 
in another world? St. Augustine tells us a pleasant 
story on this subject : " A certain mountebank published 
in the full theatre that at the next entertainment he 
would show to every man present what was in his heart. 
The time came, and the concourse was immense : all 
waited, with deathlike silence, to hear what he would 
say to each. He stood up, and in a single sentence 
redeemed his pledge : — * You all wish to buy cheap, 
and sell dear.' He was applauded ; for every one felt 
it to be a description of his own heart, and was satisfied 
that all others were similar." 

How often does charity serve as a cloak for covetous- 
ness ! God is sometimes robbed of his right under the 
pretence of devoting what is withheld to some charitable 
purpose to which there was no intention ever to give it. 

If thou be too nice in endeavouring to find out who 
are the impostors among those who profess to be in 
want, the real object may perish, which otherwise thou 
mightest have relieved, and whose life might have been 
thereby saved. The very punctilious and scrupulous 
people, who will sift every tiring to the bottom in every 
case, and before they will act must be fully satisfied in 
all points, seldom do any good, and are themselves 
generally good for nothing. While they are observing 
the clouds and the rain, others have "joined hands with 
God, and made a poor man live." 
10* 



226 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PUBLIC WORSHIP. 



XIV.— PUBLIC WORSHIP. 

By adoration we are to understand that reverence 
that is due to the highest and best of beings. The 
word "adoration" signifies that act of religious worship 
which was expressed by lifting the hand to the mouth, 
and kissing it, in token of the highest esteem and the 
most profound reverence and subjection. It implies a 
proper contemplation of His excellences, so as to excite 
wonder and admiration ; and of His goodness and bounty, 
so as to impress us with the liveliest sense of his inef- 
fable goodness to us, and our deep unvvorthiness. It 
implies the deepest awe of his divine Majesty while 
even approaching him with the strongest sensations of 
filial piety; a trembling before him while rejoicing in 
him ; the greatest circumspection in every act of reli- 
gious worship ; the mind wholly engrossed with the 
object while the heart is found in the deepest pros- 
tration at his feet ; the soul abstracted from every out- 
ward thing; no thought indulged but what relates to 
the act of worship in which we are engaged, nor a word 
uttered in prayer or praise the meaning of which is not 
felt by the heart ; no unworthy conceptions of such a 
Majesty permitted to arise in the mind ; the same wor- 
shipping in spirit and in truth ; no carelessness of man- 
ner, no boldness of expression, permitted to appear; 
the body prostrated while the soul, in all its powers and 
faculties, adores ; no lip service, no animal labour, allow- 
ed to take place ; nothing felt, nothing seen, but the 
supreme God, and the soul made by his hand and 
redeemed by his blood. 

Worship, or worthship, implies that proper concep- 
tion we should have of God, as the great governor of 
heaven and earth, of angels and men How worthy He 
is in his nature, and in the administration of his govern- 
ment, of the highest praises we can offer, and of the 
best services we can render! Every act we perform 
should bear testimony to the sense we have of the ex- 
cellence of his Majesty, and of the worthiness of his 
acts. "Speak, Lord, thy servant heareth," is the 
language of the true worshipper. He seeks to know 
the will of his Lord, that he may do that will. Every 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PUBLIC WORSHIP 227 

prayer is offered up in the spirit of subjection and obe- 
dience ; and in the deepest humility he waits to receive 
the commands of his heavenly Master, and the power to 
fulfil them. He feels that he cannot choose ; he knows 
that his Lord cannot err. " Thy will be done on earth 
as it is in heaven," is not an unmeaning petition while 
proceeding from his mouth. His soul feels it ; his 
heart desires it. Obedience is the element in which his 
soul lives, and in which it thrives, and increases in hap- 
piness. In his sight God is worthy of all glory, and 
praise, and dominion, and power, because He is not 
only the Fountain of being, but also the Source of 
mercy. He waits on his God, and he finds that his 
God waits to be gracious to him. He waits on his 
God, and he finds that this God, who is his friend, con- 
descends to be his companion through life : therefore 
his heart is fixed ; nor is he afraid of evil tidings ; for 
he trusts in the name of the Lord. He draws nigh to 
God in every act of worship, and has communion with 
the Father and the Son through the Holy Ghost. He 
is kept in perfect peace, for his mind is stayed upon 
God, because he trusts in him. All his powers are sen- 
sible of this truth, "Thou God seest me ;" and his ex- 
perience proves that God is the " rewarder of them that 
diligently seek him." 

The very eyes should be guarded : they often affect 
the heart in such a way as to mar and render unprofita- 
ble this most solemn act of devotion. The objects that 
they see will present images to the mind which call off 
or divide the thoughts, and produce that w r andering of 
heart so frequently complained of by many religious 
people, Avhose own unguarded eyes and thoughts are 
the causes of those wanderings which spoil their devo- 
tions. I never could understand how any man can 
have a collected mind or proper devotion in prayer, 
who, while he is engaged in it, has his eyes open ; not 
indeed fixed on one point, but wandering through the 
house, beholding the evil and the good. He must be 
distracted, and his prayers such, unless technical or got 
off by heart ; then indeed he may say his prayers, but 
he cannot pray them. 

Were it not for public, private worship would soon be 
at an end. To this, under God, the church of Christ 



228 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PUBLIC WORSHIP. 

owes its being and its continuance. Where there is no 
public worship there is no religion. It is by this that 
God is acknowledged, and he is the universal Being; 
and by his bounty and providence all live; conse- 
quently it is the duty of every intelligent creature pub- 
licly to acknowledge Him, and offer him that worship 
which himself has prescribed in his word. 

The wisest and best of men have always felt it their 
duty and their interest to worship God in public. As 
there is nothing more necessary, so there is nothing 
more reasonable: he who acknowledges God in all his 
ways may expect all his steps to be directed. The 
public worship of God is one grand line of distinction 
between the atheist and the believer. He who uses not 
public worship has either no God or has no right notion 
of his being ; and such a person, according to the rab- 
bins, is a bad neighbour ; it is dangerous to live near 
him ; for neither he nor his can be under the protection 
of God. No man should be forced to attend a particular 
place of worship, but every man should be obliged to 
attend some place ; and he who has any fear of God 
will not find it difficult to get a place to his mind. 

"We see the vast importance of worshipping God 
according to his own mind. No sincerity, no upright- 
ness of intention, can atone for the neglect of positive 
commands, delivered in divine revelation, when the 
revelation is known. He who will bring a eucharistic 
offering instead of a sacrifice, while a sin-offering lieth 
at the door, as he copies Cain's conduct, may expect to 
be defeated in the same manner. Reader, remember 
that thou hast an entrance into the holiest through the 
veil, that is to say, his flesh ; and those who come in 
this way God will in nowise cast out. 

Were the religion of Christ stripped of all that state 
policy, fleshly interest, and gross superstition have added 
to it, how plain and simple, (and may we not add ?) how 
amiable and glorious, would it appear ! Well may we 
say of human inventions in divine worship, what one 
said of the paintings on old cathedral windows, "Their 
principal tendency is to prevent the light from coming 
in." Nadab and Abihu could perform the worship of 
God, not according to his command, but in their own 
way ; and God not only would not receive the sacrifice 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PRATER. 229 

from their hands, but, while encompassing themselves 
with their own sparks, and warming themselves with 
their own fire, this had they from the hand of the Lord, 
— they lay down in sorrow ; "for there went out a lire 
from the Lord, and devoured them." What is written 
above is to be understood of persons who make a religion 
for themselves, leaving divine revelation ; for, being 
wilfully ignorant of God's righteousness, they go about 
to establish their own. This is a high offence in the 
sight of God. Reader, God is a Spirit, and they who 
worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. 
Such worshippers the Father seeketh. 

To worship God publicly is the duty of every man ; 
and no man can be guiltless who neglects it. If a per- 
son cannot get such public worship as he likes, let him 
frequent such as he can get. 

XV.— PRAYER. 

Prayer has been denned, " an offering of our desire 
to God for things needful, with an humble confidence to 
obtain them through the alone merits of Christ, to the 
praise of the mercy, truth, and power of God." And " its 
parts are said to be invocation, adoration, confession, 
petition, pleading, dedication, thanksgiving, and bless- 
ing." Though the definition be imperfect, yet, as far as 
it goes, it is not objectionable; but the parts of prayer, 
as they are called, (except the word petition,) have 
scarcely any thing to do with the nature of prayer. 
They are, in general, separate acts of devotion ; and 
attention to them in what is termed "praying," will 
entirely mar it, and destroy its efficacy. 

It was by following this division, that long prayers 
have been introduced among Christian congregations, 
by means of which the spirit of devotion has been lost : 
for, where such prevail most, listlessness and deadness 
are the principal characteristics of the religious services 
of such people ; and these have often engendered form- 
ality, and frequently total indifference to religion. Long 
prayers prevent kneeling, for it is utterly impossible for 
man or woman to keep on their knees during the time 
such last; where these prevail, the people either stand 
or sit. Technical prayers, I have no doubt, are odious 



230 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PRAYER. 

in the sight of God ; for no man can be in the spirit of 
devotion who uses such: it is a drawing nigh to God 
with the lips, while the heart is, almost necessarily, far 
from him. 

A proper idea of prayer is, " the pouring out the soul 
before God, with the hand of faith placed on the head 
of the sacrificial offering ; imploring mercy, and pre- 
senting itself a free-will offering unto God ; giving up 
body, soul, and spirit, to be guided and governed as may 
seem good to his heavenly wisdom, desiring only per- 
fectly to love him, and serve him with all its powers, at 
all times, while he has a being." 

It is not merely to tell God our wants, or to show him 
our state, that we are to pray ; (for he knows this state 
and these wants much better than ourselves;) but to get 
a suitable feeling of the pressure of these wants, and ihe 
necessity of having them supplied : and this we obtain 
by looking into our own hearts and lives ; for here, par- 
ticularly, the eye affects the heart, and, from the urgency 
of the necessity, we feel excited to pray earnestly to God 
for his mercy; and our confessing them before him 
affects us still more deeply ; induces us to be more fer- 
vent; and shows us that none but God can save and 
defend. 

Prayer is not designed to inform God, but to give 
man a sight of his misery ; to humble his heart, to 
excite his desire, to inflame his faith, to animate his 
hope, to rais*e his soul from earth to heaven, and to put 
him in mind that there is his Father, his country, and 
inheritance. 

Prayer is the most secret intercourse of the soul with 
God, and, as it were, the conversation of one heart with 
another. 

Prayer is the language of dependance ; he who prays 
not is endeavouring to live independently of God ; this 
was the first curse, and continues to be the great curse 
of mankind. 

Praver requires more of the heart than of the tongue. 
The eloquence of prayer consists in the fervency of 
desire and the simplicity of faith. The abundance of 
fine thoughts, studied and vehement motions, and the 
order and politeness of the expressions, are things which 
compose mere human harangue, not an humble and 



CHjtUSTlAN THEOLOGY — PRAYER. 231 

Christian prayer. Our trust and confidence should pro- 
ceed from that which God is able to do in us, and not 
from what we say to him. 

Unmeaning words, useless repetitions, and compli- 
mentary phrases in prayer, are, in general, the result of 
heathenism, hypocrisy, or ignorance. 

A fluency in prayer is not essential to praying : a 
man may pray most powerfully, in the estimation of God, 
wlio is not able to utter even one word. The unutter- 
able groan is big with meaning, and God understands it, 
because it contains the language of his own Spirit. 
Some desires are too mighty to be expressed ; there is 
no language expressive enough to give them proper 
form and distinct vocal sound : such desires show that 
they come from God ; and as they come from him, so 
they express what God is disposed to do, and what he 
has purposed to do. 

" Wherefore criest thou unto me V Wc hear not one 
word of Moses' praying, and yet here the Lord asks him 
why he cries unto him : from which we may learn that 
the heart of Moses was deeply engaged with God, 
though it is probable he did not articulate one word ; 
but the language of sighs, tears, and desires is equally 
intelligible to God with that of words. This considera- 
tion should be a strong encouragement to every feeble, 
discouraged mind : thou canst not pray, but thou canst 
weep; if even tears are denied thee, (for there may be 
deep and genuine repentance where the distress is so 
great as to stop up these channels of relief,) then thou 
canst sigh; and God, whose Spirit has thus convinced 
thee of sin, righteousness, and judgment, knows thy un- 
utterable groanings, and reads she inexpressible wish of 
thy burthened soul, — a wish of which himself is the 
Author, and which he has breathed into thy heart with 
the purpose to satisfy it. 

Prayer is the language of a conscious dependance on 
God ; and he who considers that his being is an effect 
of the divine power, the continuance of that beinij an 
effect of an ever active Providence, and his well-being 
an effect of infinite grace and mercy, will feel the neces- 
sity of praying to God, that the great purpose for w T hich 
this being was given maybe accomplished, and his soul 
saved unto eternal life. And he will feel this necessity 



233 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PRAYER. 

the more forcibly when he considers this : his Maker, 
Preserver, and Redeemer is under no obligation to con- 
tinue those exertions of his power and goodness by 
which his being is continued, his life preserved, or his 
soul saved. Did it comport with the requisition of 
divine justice, we might expect to see every prayerless 
soul blotted out of the list of intelligent beings, or anni- 
hilated from the place it occupied in the creation of God. 
To see such ungodly, unthankful, unholy, profligate, and 
perishing from the blessedness of both worlds, vessels 
of wrath fitted for destruction, can be no matter of 
surprise to those who know that they who pray not 
cannot be saved. 

He who has the spirit of prayer has the highest interest 
in the court of heaven; and the only way to retain it, is 
to keep it in constant employment. Apostacy begins in 
the closet. No man ever backslid from the life and 
power of Christianity who continued constant and fervent, 
especially in private prayer. He who prays without 
ceasing is likely to rejoice evermore. 

Where Abram has a tent, there God must have an altar, 
as he well knows there is no safety but under the divine 
protection. How few who build houses ever think on 
the propriety and necessity of building an altar to their 
Maker ! The house in which the worship of God is not 
established cannot be considered as under the divine 
protection. 

" I will therefore that men pray everywhere :" — In 
every place ; that they should always have a praying 
heart, and this will ever find a praying place. This may 
refer to a Jewish superstition. They thought, at first, 
that no prayer could be acceptable that was not offered 
at the temple at Jerusalem ; afterward this was extended 
to the Holy Land ; but, when they became dispersed 
among the nations, they built oratories, or places of 
prayer, principally by rivers, and by the seaside ; and in 
these they were obliged to allow that public prayer might 
be legally offered, but nowhere else. In opposition to 
this, the apostle, by the authority of Christ, commands 
men to pray everywhere ; that all places belong to 
God's dominions ; and, as he fills every place, in every 
place he may be worshipped and glorified. As to 
ejaculatory prayer, they allowed that this might be 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PRAYER. 233 

performed standing, sitting, leaning, lying, walking by 
the way, and during their labour. 

God is the object of prayer; and the word of God, 
and especially his promises, are also the objects of 
prayer. 

God on his mercy-seat is the object of prayer; and 
to fix the mind, and prevent it from wavering, the sup- 
plicant should consider him under such attributes as are 
best suited to his own state and wants. There are three 
general views which may be taken of this divine 
object: infinite wisdom, infinite power, infinite good- 
ness. There are few blessings which we want that do 
not come from one or other of these three sources : We 
are either ignorant, and want instruction ; weak, and 
need power; wretched, and need mercy. As we feel, 
so we should pray; and in order to feel aright, and pray 
successfully, we should endeavour to find out our state, 
to discover our most pressing wants ; and to find these, 
we need much light, which the Holy Spirit alone can 
impart. Hence, strange as it may appear, we must pray 
before we begin to pray. We must pray for light to 
discover our state, that our eye may affect our heart, in 
order to go successfully to the great object of prayer. 
To get our wants summarily supplied we must pray first 
to see what we need ; and then we shall pray to get our 
wants supplied. 

Prayer to God is considered among the Moham- 
medans in a very important point of view. It is de- 
clared by the Mosliman doctors to be " the corner stone 
of religion, and the pillar of faith." They hold the 
following points to be essentially requisite to the efficacy 
of prayer: 1. That the person be free from every spe- 
cies of defilement. 2. That all sumptuous, gaudy apparel 
be laid aside. 3. That the attention accompany the act, 
and be not suffered to wander to any other object. 
4. That the prayer be performed with the face toward 
the temple of Mecca. 

What can any man think of himself, who, in his ad- 
dresses to God, can either sit on his seat or stand in the 
presence of the Maker and Judge of all men? Would 
they sit while addressing any person of ordinary respect- 
ability 1 If they did so, they w r ould be reckoned very 
rude indeed. Would they sit in the presence of the 



234 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PRAYER. 

king of their own land ? They would not be permitted 
so to do. Is God, then, to be treated with less respect 
than a fellow-mortal? Paul kneeled in praying, Acts 
xx, 36 ; xxi, 5. Stephen kneeled when he was stoned, 
Acts vii, 60. And Peter kneeled when he raised Tabitha, 
Acts ix, 40. 

I suppose the grossly absurd and perfectly ungodly- 
custom of sitting during prayer is out of the question. 
It was so perfectly unlike every thing that was becoming 
in divine worship, and so expressive of a total want of 
reverence in the worshipper, and of that consciousness 
of his wants and deep sense of his own worthlessness 
which he ought to have, that the church of God never 
tolerated it : a custom that even heathenism itself had 
too much light either to practise or sanction. Among 
the most ancient and most enlightened nations, kneel- 
ing was ever considered to be the proper posture of 
supplication ; as it expressed humility, contrition, and 
subjection. 

At a public meeting a pious brother went to prayer; 
I kneeled on the floor, having nothing to lean against, 
or to support me. He prayed forty-eight minutes. I 
was unwilling to rise, and several times was nigh faint- 
ing. What I suffered I cannot describe. After the 
meeting was over, I ventured to expostulate with the 
good man ; and, in addition to the injury I sustained by 
his unmerciful prayer, I had the following reproof: 
" My brother, if your mind had been more spiritual, 
you would not have felt the prayer too long." More 
than twenty years have elapsed since this transaction 
took place, but the remembrance of what I then suffered 
still rests on my mind with a keen edge. The good 
man is still alive, will probably read this paper, will no 
doubt recollect the circumstance, and I hope will feel 
that he has since learned more prudence and more 
charity. 

What satisfaction must it be to learn from God him- 
self, with what words, and in what manner, he would 
have us pray to him, so as not to pray in vain ! 

Even they who use the Lord's Prayer in their public 
devotions, seem to use it in the wrong place. Should 
we not begin our addresses to God with this prayer? 
and then after that manner continue our requests to a 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PRAYER. 235 

reasonable length ? But whether used in the beginning-, 
middle, or end, let it never be forgotten. 

Can he who sees himself a slave of the devil, beg 
with too much earnestness to be delivered from his 
thraldom ? 

" This is the confidence," — the liberty of access and 
speech, " that if we ask any thing according to his will f ' 
that is, which he has promised in his word. His word 
is a revelation of his will, in the things which concern 
the salvation of man. All that God has promised we 
are justified in expecting ; and what he has promised, 
and we expect, we should pray for. Prayer is the lan- 
guage of the children of God. He who is begotten of 
God speaks this language. He calls God, " Abba, 
Father !" in the true spirit of supplication. Prayer is 
the language of dependence on God ; where the soul is 
dumb, there is neither life, love, nor faith. Faith and 
prayer are not boldly to advance claims upon God ; we 
must take heed that what we ask and believe for, is 
agreeable to the revealed will of God. What we find 
promised, that we may plead. 

Come with confidence to the throne of grace. Know 
that it is such ; and that He who sits on it is gracious. 
When you approach, you have an Intercessor there : he 
will introduce you : he will recommend your suit, plead 
in your behalf, give you full liberty to use his name, 
to appropriate to yourselves the infinite merit of his 
passion and death, his resurrection and mediation ; and 
to avail yourselves of that indescribable nearness he 
has to the Father, as his beloved Son, in whom he is 
well pleased ; and his affinity to you, as "God manifested 
in the flesh." It is impossible that any thing can be 
added, to strengthen this confidence ; or by a more 
powerful argument to ensure a success which, from the 
above considerations, must be certain and absolute. 

" In the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee." 
Here seems to be a metaphor taken from an archer. 
He sees his mark ; puts his arrow in his bow ; directs 
his shaft to the mark, that is, takes his aim ; lets fly; 
and then looks up, to see if he has hit his mark. 
Prayers that have a right aim will have a prompt 
answer : and he who sends up his petitions to God 
through Christ, from a warm, affectionate heart, may 



- ■ — -7.-.AYE3. 

conn answer: tor it will come. 

swer be not g el not the 

its id there it is 

k i 

.■'.■".:: view. Our 

Id be dire, jh him to the Father : 

and. under the conviction that his passion and death 

. ry possible blessing for us, we should, 

with humble we need ; 

in him the Father is ever well pleased, we 

most confidently ei sssings he has 

purchased. 

prayer that is not - - through the influence 

of the ver likely to reach heaven. 

rldly men. it* they pray at all. ask for temporal 
things: ""What shall v what shall we drink? 

wherewithal shall Most c : 

true religious people g mother extreme: thev 

. : the body, and as soul: an 

there are "th: _■ lisiU and necessary as well lor 

the body as the soul," and things which are onlv at 

- is KsaL The body lir - 
life and comfort are in many respects essentially i* 
site to the salvation of the soul : and therefore the thi 

■port should be earnestly asked from 
the God of all grace, the Father of bounty and provi- 
dence. •• Ye have not, bee?. .." maybe said 
to many poor, ifflieted religions people; and they are 
st it should appear mercenary, or that 
they sought their portion in this life. They should be 
better taught. :• none of these will God give a 
stone i He who is so libera] of his hea- 
venly bles- igs will not withhold earthly ones, which 
are indni.f :: less const Reader, expect 
*s blessing on thy honest industry ; pray foi it, and 
believe that God does not love thee less, who hast taken 
refuge in the same hope, than he loved Isaac ? 
..'.-• his promises, but plead on the precedent 
has sej before theej " Lord, thou didst so and sc 
Abraham. ::• Isaac, to Jacob, and to others who trns 
in theej bless my field, bless my flocks, prosper my 



CHRISTIA5 THEOLOGY — PRAYER. 237 

labour, that I may be able to provide things honest in 
the sight of all men, and have something to dispense to 
those who are in want." And will not God hear such 
prayers? Yea, and answer them too, for he does not 
willingly airlict the children of men. And we may rest 
assured that there is more afHiction and poverty in the 
world than either the justice or providence of God re- 
quires. There are, however, many who owe their 
poverty to their want of diligence and economy ; they 
sink down into indolence, and forget that word, §i What- 
soever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might ;" 
nor do they consider that " by idleness a man is clothed 
in rags." Be diligent in business, and fervent in spirit, 
and God will withhold from thee no manner of thing 
that is good. 

We must ask only what is necessary for our support; 
God having promised neither luxuries nor superfluities. 
Daily support for our bodies, and daily support for our 
souls, is all that we need : and this we should pray for; 
and this we have reason to expect from a bountiful and 
merciful God ; and then leave it to him to care for that 
body and that soul as he pleases. We are his servants : 
he calls us to labour : and no man will expect his servants 
to fulfil their task, if they have nothing to eat. God, 
our heavenly Master, will give us bread for both worlds. 

He who prays for " riches," prays for snares, vanity, 
and vexation of spirit. He who prays for •■ poverty," 
prays for what ^evr can bear: and should his prayer be 
heard, and he become poor, he will most probably steal, 
and take the name of the Lord in vaia. 

God's way is ever best. We know not what we ask, 
nor what we ought to ask, and therefore often ask amiss 
when we petition for such secular things as belong" to 
the dispensations of God's providence. For things of 
this kind we have no revealed directory: and when we 
ask for them, it should be with the deepest submission 
to the divine will, as God alone knows what is best for 
us. With respect to the soul, every thing is clearly 
revealed, so that we may ask and receive, and have a 
fulness of joy : but as to our bodies, there is much rea- 
son to fear that the answer of our petitions would be, 
in numerous cases, our inevitable destruction. How 
many prayers does God in mercy shut out ! 



238 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PRAYER. 

When a man has any doubts whether he has grieved 
God's Spirit, and his mind feels troubled, it is much 
better for him to go immediately to God, and ask for- 
giveness, than spend any time in finding excuses for his 
conduct, or labouring to divest it of its seeming obliquity. 
Restraining or suppressing prayer, in order to find ex- 
cuses or palliations for infirmities, indiscretions, or 
improprieties of any kind, which appear to trench on the 
sacred limits of morality and godliness, maybe to a man 
the worst of evils : humiliation and prayer for mercy 
and pardon can never be out of its place to any soul 
of man, who, surrounded with evils, is ever liable to 
offend. 

Prayer is a part of the worship which God expects 
from his creatures. " Ask," says he, " and you shall 
receive ; seek," says he, "and you shall find: knock," 
he adds, "and it shall be opened unto you." This is 
the voice of a Father : now, would any man that had 
the heart of a parent give his hungry dying child a stone 
when he asked for bread? would he give him a serpent 
w T hen he asked for fish ? or would he give him a scor- 
pion when he entreated for an egg? Surely, no ! And 
would God, the Father of the spirits of all flesh, do other- 
wise ? His word says, "No:" his Spirit says, "No:" 
his church says, " No :" and his own eternal and loving 
nature says^"No." God the Father will, for Christ's 
sake, for his own name's sake, and for his truth's sake, 
" give his Holy Spirit to them that ask him." Have not 
the fathers of our flesh cared for us, laboured for us, fed 
us, clothed us, instructed us, and defended us? Have 
they not even risked their lives for us ? And what will 
not our heavenly Father do ? Is it not from him that 
all love, all bounty, all affection, all parental tenderness 
proceed ? And when the streamlets are abundant, what 
may not be expected from the fountain, — rather from 
the shoreless, bottomless, inexhaustible ocean of eternal 
love ! He is seeking for those who pray and adore ; 
seeking for an opportunity to do them good; seeking 
to save them, to pardon, sanctify, and seal them heirs 
of eternal life. 

As God has graciously promised to give salvation to 
every soul that comes unto him through his Son, and 
has put his Spirit into their hearts, inducing them to 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV — PRAYER. 239 

cry unto him incessantly for it ; the goodness of his 
nature and the promise of his grace bind him to hear 
the prayers they offer unto him, and to grant them all 
that salvation which he has led them by his promise 
and Spirit to request. 

He who does not pray is not humble ; and an un- 
humbled searcher after truth never yet found it to the 
salvation of his soul. 

God never inspires a prayer but with the design to 
answer it. What goodness is there equal to this of 
God ? — to give not only what we ask, and more than 
we ask, but to reward even prayer itself! 

The only return that God requires is, that we ask for 
more ! Who is like God ? One reason why we should 
never more come to a fellow mortal for a favour is, we 
have received so many already. A strong reason why 
we should claim the utmost salvation of God is, because 
we are already so much in debt to his mercy. Now, 
this is the only way we have of discharging our debts to 
God; and yet, strange to tell, every such attempt to 
discharge the debt only serves to increase it. Yet, not- 
withstanding, the debtor and Creditor are represented as 
both pleased, both profited, and both happy in each 
other ! Reader ! pray to Him, invoke his name ; re- 
ceive the cup ; accept the abundance of salvation which 
He has provided thee, that thou mayest love and serve 
him with a perfect heart. 

It is a modern refinement in theology which teaches 
that no man can know when God hears and answers his 
prayers but by an induction of particulars, and by an 
inference from his promises. And on this ground, how 
can any man fairly presume that he is heard or an- 
swered at all ? May not his inductions be no other than 
the common, occurrences of providence ? And may not 
providence be no more than the necessary occurrence 
of events? And is it not possible that, on this skeptic 
ground, there is no God to hear or answer ? True reli- 
gion knows nothing of these abominations : it teaches 
its votaries to pray to God, to expect an answer from 
him, and to look for the Holy Spirit to bear witness with 
their spirits that they are the sons and daughters of 
God. 

God has put it in the power of every man to know 



240 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PRAYER. 

whether the religion of the Bible he true or false. The 
promises relative to enjoyments in this life are the grand 
tests of divine revelation. These must be fulfilled to 
all them who, with deep repentance and true faith, turn 
unto the Lord, if the revelation which contains them 
be of God. Let any man, in this spirit, approach his 
Maker, and plead the promises that are suited to his 
case, and he will soon know whether the doctrine be of 
God. He shall taste, and then see, that the Lord is 
good, and that the man is blessed who trusts in him. 
This is what is called " experimental religion," the 
living operative knowledge that a true believer has that 
he is passed from death to life ; that his sins are for- 
given him for Christ's sake, the Spirit himself bearing 
witness with his spirit that he is a child of God. 

Prayer is always heard after one manner or another. 
No soul can pray in vain that prays as Christ directs. 
The truth and faithfulness of the Lord Jesus are pledged 
for its success. Bring Christ's word and Christ's sacri- 
fice with thee, and not one of Heaven's blessings can 
be denied thee. 

One person full of faith and prayer maybe the means 
of drawing down innumerable blessings on his family 
and acquaintance. 

How true is that word, "The energetic faithful prayer 
of a righteous man availeth much !" Abraham draws 
near to God by affection and faith, and in the most de- 
vout and humble manner makes prayer and suppli- 
cation ; and every petition is answered on the spot. 
Nor does God cease to promise to show mercy till 
Abraham ceases to intercede ! What encouragement 
does this hold put to them that fear God to make prayer 
and intercession for their sinful neighbours and ungodly 
relatives ! Faith in the Lord Jesus endues prayer with 
a species of omnipotence ; whatsoever a man asks of 
the Father in his name he will do it. Prayer has been 
termed " the gate of heaven ;" but without faith that 
gate cannot be opened. He who prays as he should, 
and believes as he ought, shall have the fulness of the 
blessing of the gospel of peace. 

Prayer not only necessarily supposes the being of a 
God, (for he that cometh unto God must believe that he 
is,) but also the providence of God. For why should 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PRAYER. 241 

we pray to him to avert evil, if we do not acknowledge 
that he exercises a universal providence in the world? 
Why should we pray to be preserved in and from dan- 
gers, if we be not convinced that he has sway every- 
where, and that all things serve the purposes of his 
gracious will? And why should men in every place 
who pray and make supplication expect to be heard, 
unless it be an incontrovertible truth that God is om- 
nipotent, and that he can and will so interfere with, and 
interpose in, the matters that concern them? And 
should evil be coming against them in direct course, he 
can divert it, turn it entirely back, so that it shall have 
no operation near them ; or, if he permit it to come on, 
convert it to their great spiritual advantage, by counter- 
working the bad effects which it would otherwise pro- 
duce, and thus, by his providence (in answer to their 
prayers) working together with his grace, cause all 
those things which would otherwise be mischievous to 
work for their present good and future happiness. 

"Hear what the unjust judge saith." Our blessed 
Lord intimates that we should reason thus with our- 
selves : "If a person of such an infamous character as 
this judge was, could yield to the pressing and continual 
solicitations of a poor widow for whom he felt nothing 
but contempt, how much more ready must God be, who 
is infinitely good and merciful, and who loves his crea- 
tures in the tenderest manner, to give his utmost salva- 
tion to all them who diligently seek it !" 

" Which cry day and night unto him," &c. This is 
a genuine characteristic of the true elect, or disciples 
of Christ. They feel they have neither light, power, 
nor goodness, but as they receive them from him ; and 
as he is. the desire of their soul, they incessantly seek 
that they may be upheld and saved by him. 

The reason which our Lord gives for the success of 
his chosen is, 1. They cry unto him day and night. 
2. He is compassionate toward them. In consequence 
of the first, they might expect justice even from an un- 
righteous judge; and, in consequence of the second, 
they are sure of salvation, because they ask it from that 
God who is toward them a Father of eternal love and 
compassion. There was little reason to expect justice 
from the unrighteous judge: 1, Because he was mi- 
ll 



242 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PRAISE. 

righteous ; and 2. Because he had no respect for man : 
no, not even for a poor desolate widow. But there is 
all the reason under heaven to expect mercy from God : 

1. Because he is righteous, and he has promised it ; and 

2. Because he is compassionate toward his creatures ; 
being ever prone to give more than the most enlarged 
heart can request of him. 



XVI.— PRAISE. 

All intelligent beings are especially called to praise 
Him who made them in his love, and sustains them by 
his beneficence. Man particularly, in all the stages of 
his being, infancy, youth, manhood, and old age ; all 
human beings have their peculiar interest in the great 
Father of the spirits of all flesh : he loves man, where- 
soever found, of whatsoever colour, in whatever circum- 
stances, and in all the stages of his pilgrimage from his 
cradle to his grave. Let the lisp of the infant, the 
shout of the adult, and the sigh of the aged, ascend to 
the universal Parent, as a gratitude-offering. He guards 
those who hang upon the breast ; controls and directs 
the headstrong and the giddy ; and sustains old age in 
its infirmities, and sanctifies to it the sufferings that 
bring on the termination of life. Reader, this is thy 
God ! how great ! how good ! how merciful ! how com- 
passionate ! Breathe thy soul up to him ; breathe it 
into him, and let it be preserved in his bosom, till mor- 
tality be swallowed up of life, and all that is imperfect 
be done away ! Jesus is thy sacrificial offering : Jesus 
is thy mediator: he has taken thy humanity, and placed 
it on the throne ! He creates all things new ; and faith 
in his blood will bring thee to his glory ! Amen ! Hal- 
lelujah. 

Were I like Mohammed's feigned angel, having to my 
lot seventy thousand heads\ each actuated by as many 
tongues, and each of these uttering seventy thousand 
distinct voices, with my present ideas of the divine 
Being, I should think their eternal vibrations in his 
praise an almost no-tribute to a God immeasurably 
good! And yet, where am I going? I have but one 
tongue, and that speaks but very inexpressively ; the 
choicest blessings of heaven are given unto me, and 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PRAISE. 243 

how, how seldom, comparatively, is it used in showing 
forth his excellency, or acknowledging how deep his 
debtor I am ! O my God ! what reason have I to be 
ashamed and confounded ? But thou wilt have mercy. 
Again : I discover that God can only be viewed in the 
above light through God made man, that is, manifested 
in the flesh; and this sets forth the Redeemer in the 
most amiable and absolutely important point of view. 
God through him is altogether lovely ! But remove 
this medium, and this my beautiful system is lost in 
chaos, in the twinkling of an eye. Glory be to God for 
Christ ! Amen. 

God is to receive praise in reference to that attribute 
which he has exhibited most in the defence or salva- 
tion of his followers. Sometimes he manifests his 
power ; sometimes his mercy ; sometimes his wisdom, 
his long-suffering, his fatherly care, his good providence, 
his holiness, his justice, his truth, &c. Whatever attri- 
bute or perfection he exhibits most, that should be the 
chief subject of his children's praise. One wants teach- 
ing, prays for it, and is deeply instructed ; he will natu- 
rally celebrate the wisdom of God. Another feels him- 
self beset with the most powerful adversaries, with the 
weakest of whom he is not able to cope ; he cries to the 
almighty God for strength ; he is heard, and strength- 
ened with strength in his soul : he therefore will natu- 
rally magnify the all-conquering power of the Lord : 
another feels himself lost — condemned — on the brink of 
hell; he calls for mercy ; is heard, and saved : mercy, 
therefore, will be the chief subject of his praise, and the 
burden of his song. 

The deliverance of mariners from imminent danger, 
and in a way which clearly shows the divine interposi- 
tion, demands not only gratitude of heart, and the tongue 
of praise, at the end of the storm ; but when they come 
to shore, they should publicly acknowledge it in the con- 
gregation of God's people. I have been often pleased, 
when in seaport towns, to see and hear notes sent to the 
minister from pious sailors, returning thanks to the 
Almighty for preservation from shipwreck ; and, in gene- 
ral, from the dangers of the sea ; and for bringing them 
back in safety to their own port. Thus " they exalt the 



244 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PRAISE, 

Lord in the congregation, and praise him in the assem- 
bly of the elders." 

Though I never had a personal quarrel with the 
singers in any place, yet I have never known one case, 
where there was a choir of singers, that they did not 
make disturbance in the societies. And it would be 
much better in every case, and in every respect, to em- 
ploy a precentor, or a person to raise the tunes ; and 
then the congregation would learn to sing, the purpose of 
singing would be accomplished, every mouth would con- 
fess to God, and a horrible evil would be prevented — the 
bringing together in the house of God, and making them 
the almost only instruments of celebrating his praises, 
such a company of gay, airy, giddy, and ungodly men and 
women as are generally grouped in such choirs; for voice 
and skill must be had, let decency of behaviour and mo- 
rality be where they will. Every thing must be sacrificed 
to a good voice, in order to make the choir complete 
and respectable. Many scandals have been brought into 
the church of God by choirs and their accompaniments. 
Why do not the Methodist preachers lay this to heart? 

The singing which is recommended, Col. iii, 16, is 
widely different from what is commonly used in most 
Christian congregations ; a congeries of unmeaning 
sounds, associated to bundles of nonsensical and often 
ridiculous repetitions, which at once both deprave and 
disgrace the church of Christ. Melody, which is allowed 
to be the most proper for devotional music, is now sacri- 
ficed to an exuberant harmony, which requires not only 
many different kinds of voices, but different musical 
instruments to support it. And by these preposterous 
means the simplicity of the Christian worship is de- 
stroyed, and all edification totally prevented. And this 
kind of singing is amply proved to be very injurious to 
the personal piety of those employed in it : even of 
those who enter with a considerable share of humility 
and Christian meekness, how few continue to sing with 
grace in their hearts unto the Lord ! 

It does appear that singing psalms or spiritual hymns 
was one thing that was implied in what is termed pro- 
phesying, in the Old Testament, as is evident from 
1 Sam. x, 5, 6, 10, &c. And when this came through 
an immediate afflatus, or inspiration of God, there is no 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PRAISE. 245 

doubt that it was exceedingly edifying ; and must have 
served greatly to improve and excite the devotional 
spirit of all that were present. But I rather suppose 
that their singing consisted in solemn, well measured 
recitative, than in the jingling and often foolish sounds 
which we use when a single monosyllable is sometimes 
shivered into a multitude of semiquavers ! Here it may 
not be improper to remark, that the spirit and the un- 
derstanding are seldom united in our congregational 
singing. Those whose hearts are right with God have 
generally no skill in music ; and those who are well 
skilled in music have seldom a devotional spirit, but are 
generally proud, self-willed, contentious, and arrogant. 
Do not these persons entirely overrate themselves ? Of 
all the liberal arts, surely music is the least useful, how- 
ever ornamental it may be. And should any thing be 
esteemed in the church of God but in proportion to its 
utility. A good singer among the people of God, who 
has not the life of God in his soul, is vox et prceterea 
nihil, as Heliogabalus said of the nightingale's brains, 
on which he desired to sup, " He is nothing but a 
sound." Some of those persons, I mean those who sing 
with the understanding without the spirit, suppose them- 
selves of great consequence in the church of Christ ; and 
they find foolish superficial people whom they persuade 
to be of their own mind, and soon raise parties and con- 
tentions, if they have not every thing their own way ; and 
that way is generally as absurd as it is unscriptural and 
contrary to the spirit and simplicity of the gospel. 

It is very likely that the singing of the Jews was only 
a kind of recitative or chanting, such as we still find in 
the synagogues. It does not appear that God had 
especially appointed these singers, much less any musi- 
cal instruments, the silver trumpets excepted, to be 
employed in his service. Musical instruments in the 
house of God are, at least, under the gospel, repugnant 
to the spirit of Christianity, and tend not a little to cor- 
rupt the worship of God. Those who are fond of music 
in the theatre are fond of it in the house of God, when 
they go thither ; and some, professing Christianity, set 
up such a spurious worship, in order to draw people to 
hear the gospel. This is doing evil, that good may 
come of it ; and, by this means, light and trifling people 



246 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PRAISE. 

are introduced into the church of Christ ; and, when in, 
are generally very troublesome, hard to be pleased, and 
difficult to be saved. 

Did ever God ordain instruments of music to be used 
in his worship? Can they be used in Christian assem- 
blies according to the spirit of Christianity ? Has Jesus 
Christ, or his apostles, ever commanded or sanctioned 
the use of them ? Were they ever used anywhere in 
the apostolic church? Does the use of them at present, 
in Christian congregations, ever increase the spirit of 
devotion ? Does it ever appear that bands of musicians, 
either in their collective or individual capacity, are more 
spiritual, or as spiritual, as the other parts of the church 
of Christ? Is there more pride, self-will, stubbornness, 
insubordination, lightness, and frivolity, among such 
persons, than among the other professors of Christian- 
ity found in the same religious society ? Is it ever 
remarked or known that musicians, in the house of 
God, have ever attained to any depth of piety, or supe- 
rior soundness of understanding, in the things of God? 
Is it ever found that those churches and Christian socie- 
ties which have and use instruments of music in divine 
worship, are more holy, or as holy, as those societies 
which do not use them ? And is it always found that 
the ministers who affect and recommend them to be 
used in the worship of almighty God, are the most spi- 
ritual men, and the most spiritual and useful preachers ? 
Can mere sounds, no matter how melodious, where no 
word or sentiment is or can be uttered, be considered as 
giving praise to God ? Is it possible that pipes or 
strings of any kind can give God praise? Can God be 
pleased with sounds which are emitted by no sentient 
being, and have in themselves no meaning ? If these 
questions cannot be answered in the affirmative, then 
is not the introduction of such instruments into the 
worship of God antichristian, calculated to debase and 
ultimately ruin the spirit and influences of the gospel 
of Jesus Christ? And should not all who wish well to 
the spread and establishment of pure and undefiled reli- 
gion lift up their hand, their influence, and their voice 
against them? The argument from their use in the 
Jewish service is futile in the extreme, when applied 
to Christianity. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PRAISE. 247 

In a representative system of religion, such as the 
Jewish, there must have been much outside work, all 
emblematical of better things ; no proof that such things 
should be continued under the gospel dispensation, 
where outsides have disappeared, shadows flown away, 
and the substance alone is presented to the hearts of 
mankind. He must be ill off for proofs in favour of 
instrumental music in the church of Christ, who has 
recourse to practices under the Jewish ritual ! 

Moses had not appointed any musical instruments to 
he used in the divine worship ; there was nothing of 
the kind under the first tabernacle. The trumpets, or 
horns, then used, were not for song, nor for praise, but, 
as we use bells, to give notice to the congregation of . 
what they were called to perform, &c. But David did 
certainly introduce many instruments of music into 
God's worship ; for which, we have already seen, he 
was solemnly reproved by the Prophet Amos, chap, vi, 
1-6. Here, however, the author of this book states he 
had the commandment of the Prophet Nathan, and Gad, 
the king's seer; and this is stated to have been the 
commandment of the Lord by his prophets. But the 
Syriac and Arabic give this a different turn: "Heze- 
kiah appointed the Levites in the house of the Lord, 
with instruments of music, and the sound of harps, and 
with the hymns of David, and the hymns of Gad, the 
king's prophet; for David sang the praises of the Lord 
his God, as from the mouth of the prophets." It was 
by the hand or commandment of the Lord and his pro- 
phets, that the Levites should praise the Lord ; for so 
the Hebrew text may be understood ; and it was by the 
order of David that so many instruments of music 
should be introduced into the divine service. But were 
it even evident, which it is not, either from this or any 
other place in the sacred writings, that instruments of 
music were prescribed by divine authority under the 
law, could this be adduced with any semblance of rea- 
son that they ought to be used in Christian worship ? 
No, the whole spirit, soul, and genius of the Christian 
religion are against this ; and those who know the 
church of God best, and what constitutes its genuine 
spiritual state, know that these things have been intro- 
duced as a substitute for the life and power of religion, 



248 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PRAISE. 

and that where they prevail most there is least of the 
power of Christianity. Away with such portentous 
bawbles from the worship of that infinite Spirit who 
requires his followers to worship him in spirit and in 
truth ! for to no such worship are those instruments 
friendly. 

I have no doubt but the gross perversion of the sim- 
plicity of Christian worship, by the introduction of 
various instruments of music into churches and chapels, 
if not a species of idolatry, will at least rank with will- 
worship and superstitious rites and ceremonies. Where 
the Spirit and unction of God do not prevail in Chris- 
tian assemblies, priests and people being destitute of 
both, their place, by general consent, is to be supplied 
by imposing ceremonies, noise, and show. 

The Church of Rome, in every country where it 
either prevails or exists, has so blended a pretended 
Christian devotion with heathenish and Jewish rites 
and ceremonies, two parts of which are borrowed from 
pagan Rome, the third from the Jewish ritual ill under- 
stood, and grossly misrepresented, and the fourth part 
from other corruptions of the Christian system. Nor is 
the Protestant church yet fully freed from a variety of 
matters in public worship which savours little of that 
simplicity and spirituality which should ever designate 
the worship of that infinitely pure Spirit who cannot be 
pleased with any thing incorporated with his worship 
that has not been prescribed by himself, and has not a 
direct tendency to lead the heart from earth and sensual 
things to heaven, and to that holiness without which 
none shall see the Lord. The singing, as it is practised 
in several places, and the heathenish accompaniments 
of organs and musical instruments of various sorts, are 
as contrary to the simplicity of the gospel, and the 
spirituality of that worship which God requires, as 
darkness is contrary to light. And if these abuses are 
not corrected, I believe the time is not far distant when 
singing will cease to be a part of the divine worship. 
It is now, in many places, such as cannot be said to be 
any part of that worship w T hich is in spirit and accord- 
ing to truth. May God mend it ! 

Charles Wesley, A.M., was the best Christian poet 
in reference to hymnology that has flourished in either 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 249 

ancient or modern times. The hymns used in the reli- 
gious services of the Methodists were composed prin- 
cipally by him ; and such a collection exists not among 
any other people. Most collections among other sects 
of Christians are indebted to his compositions for some 
of their principal excellences. 

XVII.— THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 

The word church simply means an " assembly" or 
" congregation," and must have some other word joined 
to it to determine its nature : namely, the " church of 
God ;" the congregation collected by God, and devoted 
to his service; the "church of Christ;" the whole 
company of Christians wheresoever found ; because, by 
the preaching of the gospel, they are called out of the 
spirit and maxims of the world, to live according to the 
precepts of the Christian religion. This is sometimes 
called the " catholic" or " universal" church, because 
constituted of all the professors of Christianity in the 
world, to whatsoever sects or parties they may belong ; 
and hence the absurdity of applying the term " catholic," 
which signifies " universal," to that very small portion 
of it, the Church of Rome. In primitive times, before 
Christians had any stated buildings, they worshipped in 
private houses ; the people that had been converted to 
God meeting together in some one dwelling house of a 
fellow convert more convenient and capacious than the 
rest; hence '"the church that was in the house of 
Aquila and Priscilla," Rom. xvi, 3, 5 ; and 1 Cor. 
xvi, 19 ; and " the church that was in the house of 
Nymphas," Col. iv, 15. Now, as these houses were 
dedicated to the worship of God, each was termed 
kuriov oikos, the " house of the Lord ;" which word, in 
process of time, became contracted into kurioik, and 
kuriake ; and hence the kirk of our northern neigh- 
bours, and kirik, of our Saxon ancestors, from which, 
by corruption, changing the hard Saxon c into cA, we 
have made the word " church." This term, though it 
be generally used to signify the people worshipping in a 
particular place, yet by a metonymy, the container being 
put for the contained, we apply, as it was originally, 
to the building which contains the worshipping people. 
11 # 



250 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 

The church of Christ was considered an enclosure ; a 
field, or vineyard, well hedged or walled. Those who 
were not members of it were considered without; that 
is, not under that especial protection and defence which 
the true followers of Christ had. This has been since 
called, " the pale of the church," from palus, a stake ; 
or, as Dr. Johnson defines it, " A narrow piece of wood, 
joined above and below to a rail, to enclose grounds." 
As to be a Christian was essential to the salvation of the 
soul, so to be in the church of Christ was essential to 
the being a Christian ; therefore it was concluded " there 
was no salvation out of the pale of the church." Now 
this is true in all places where the doctrines of Chris- 
tianity are preached : but when one description of 
people professing Christianity, with their own peculiar 
mode of worship and creed, arrogate to themselves, ex- 
clusive of all others, the title of " the church ;" and 
then, on the ground of a maxim which is true in itself, 
but falsely understood and applied by them, assert that, 
as they are the church, and there is no church beside, 
then 3^011 must be one of them, believe as they believe, 
and worship as they worship, or you will be infallibly 
damned ; — I say, when this is asserted, every man who 
feels he has an immortal spirit is called on to examine 
the pretensions of such spiritual monopolists. Now as 
the church of Christ is formed on the foundation of the 
prophets and apostles, Jesus Christ being the chief cor- 
ner stone, the doctrines of this Christian church must 
be sought for in the sacred Scriptures. As to fathers, 
councils, and human authorities of all kinds, they are, 
in this question, lighter than vanity ; the book of God 
alone must decide. The church which has been so 
hasty to condemn all others, and, by its own soi-disant 
or self-constituted authority, to make itself the deter- 
miner of the fates of men, dealing out the mansions of 
glory to its partisans, and the abodes of endless misery 
to all those who are out of its antichristian and inhuman 
pale ; this church, I say, has been brought to this stand- 
ard, and proved by the Scriptures to be fallen from the 
faith of God's elect, and to be most awfully and dan- 
gerously corrupt; and to be within its pale, of all others 
professing Christianity, would be the most likely means 
of endangering the final salvation of the soul. Yet 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 251 

even in it many sincere and upright persons may be 
found, who, in spirit and practice, belong to the true 
church of Christ. Such persons are to be found of 
all religious persuasions, and in all sorts of Christian 
societies. 

Of this glorious church every Christian soul is an 
epitome : for as God dwells in the church at large, so 
he dwells in every believer in particular : each is a 
habitation of God through the Spirit. In vain are all 
pretensions among sects and parties to the privilege of 
the church of Christ, if they have not the doctrine and 
life of Christ. Traditions and legends are not apostolic 
doctrines, and showy ceremonies are not the life of God 
in the soul of man. 

Religion has no need of human ornaments or trap- 
pings ; it shines by its own light, and is refulgent with 
its own glory. Where it is not in life and power, men 
have endeavoured to produce a specious image, dressed 
and ornamented with their own hands. Into this, God 
never breathed ; therefore, it can do no good to man, and 
only imposes on the ignorant and credulous by a vain 
show of lifeless pomp and splendour. This phantom, 
called " true religion," and " the church," by its votaries, 
is in heaven denominated " vain superstition ;" the 
speechless symbol of departed piety. 

The government of the church of Christ is widely 
different from secular governments. It is founded in 
humility and brotherly love : it is derived from Christ, 
the great head of the church, and is ever conducted by 
his maxims and Spirit. When political matters are 
brought into the church of Christ, both are ruined. The 
church has more than once ruined the. state: the state 
has often corrupted the church : it is certainly for the 
interests of both to be kept separate. This has already 
been abundantly exemplified in both cases, and will con- 
tinue to be, over the whole world, wherever the church 
and state are united in secular matters. 

" The chief priests were sore displeased," or, " were 
incensed." Incensed at what ? At the purification of 
the profane temple ! This was a work they should have 
done themselves, but for w r hich they had neither grace 
nor influence ; and their pride and jealousy will not suffer 
them to permit others to do it. Strange as it may ap- 



252 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 

pear, the priesthood itself, in all corrupt times, has ever 
been the most forward to prevent a reform in the church. 
Was it because they were conscious that a reformer 
would find them no better than money-changers in, and 
profaners of, the house of God, and that they and their 
system must be overturned, if the true worship of God 
were restored ? Let him who is concerned answer this 
to his conscience. 

"No secular arm, no human prudence, no earthly 
policy, in suits at law, shall ever be used for the found- 
ing, extension, and preservation of my church." But the 
spirit of the world says, "These are all means to which 
we must have recourse ; otherwise the cause of God may 
be'ruined." Satan, thou liest ! 

How strange it is that people professing Christianity 
can suppose, that, with a worldly spirit, worldly com- 
panions, and their lives governed by worldly maxims, 
they can be in the favour of God, or ever get to the 
kingdom of heaven ! When the world gets into the 
church, the church becomes a painted sepulchre ; its 
spiritual vitality becomes extinct. 

I believe God never intended that his church should 
have the civil government of the world. His church, 
like its Founder and Head, will never be a ruler and 
divider among men. The men who, under pretence of 
superior sanctity, affect this, are not of God : the truth 
of God is not in them ; they are puffed up with pride, 
and fall into the condemnation of the devil. "Wo 
unto the inhabiters of the earth," when the church 
takes the civil government of the world into its hands ! 
Were it possible that God should trust religious people 
with civil government, anarchy would soon ensue ; for 
every professed believer in Christ would consider him- 
self on a par with any other and every other believer : 
the right to rule and the necessity to obey would be 
immediately lost, and every man would do what was 
right in his own eyes ; for, where the grace of God 
makes all equal, who can presume to say* " I have divine 
authority to govern my fellows?" The Church of Rome 
has claimed this right; and the pope, in consequence, 
became a secular prince : but the nations of the world 
have seen the vanity and iniquity of the claim, and 
refused allegiance. Those whom it did govern, with 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — BAPTISM, 253 

force and cruelty did it rule them ; and the odious yoke 
is now universally cast off. Certain enthusiasts and 
hypocrites, not of that church, have also attempted to 
set up a fifth monarchy, a civil government by the 
saints ! — and diabolic saints they were. To such pre- 
tenders God gives neither countenance nor support. 
The secular and spiritual government God will ever 
keep distinct : and the church shall have no power but 
that of doing good; and this only in proportion to its 
holiness, heavenly-mindedness, and piety to God. 

XVIII.— BAPTISM. 

In what form baptism was originally administered, 
has been deemed a subject worthy of serious dispute. 
Were the people dipped or sprinkled ? for it is certain 
pa-nTu and [3a-Tuto mean both. "They were all dip- 
ped," say some. Can any man suppose that it was possi- 
ble for John to dip all the inhabitants of Jerusalem and 
Judea, and of all the country round about the Jordan? 
Were both men and women dipped? for certainly both 
came to his baptism. This could never have comported 
either with safety or with decency. Were they dipped 
in their clothes ? This would have endangered their 
lives, if they had not with them change of raiment : 
And as such a baptism as John's (however administered) 
was, in several respects, a new thing in Judea, it is not 
at all likely that the people would come thus provided. 
But suppose these were dipped, which I think it 
would be impossible to prove, does it follow that in 
all regions of the world men and women must be 
dipped, in order to be evangelically baptized? In the 
eastern countries bathings were frequent, because of 
the heat of the climate, it being there so necessary to 
cleanliness and health : but could our climate, or a 
more northerly one, admit of this with safety, for at 
least three fourths of the year ? We may rest assured 
that it could not. And may we not presume that 
if John had opened his commission in the north of 
Great Britain, for many months of the year, he would 
have dipped neither man nor woman, unless he could 
have procured a tepid bath? Those who are dipped or 
immersed in water, in the name of the holy Trinity, 






254 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— BAPTISM. 

I believe to be evangelically baptized : those who are 
washed or sprinkled with water, in the name of the 
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, I be- 
lieve to be equally so ; and the repetition of such a bap- 
tism I believe to be profane. Others have a right to 
believe the contrary if they see good. After all, it is 
the thing signified, and not the mode, which is the 
essential part of the sacrament. 

Though " little children," they were capable of re- 
ceiving Christ's blessing. If Christ embraced them, 
why should not his church embrace them? Why not 
dedicate them to God by baptism? — whether that be 
performed by sprinkling, washing, or immersion ; for 
we need not dispute about the mode : on this point let 
every one be fully persuaded in his own mind. I con- 
fess it appears to me grossly heathenish and barbarous, 
to see parents who profess to believe in that Christ who 
loves children, and among them those whose creed does 
not prevent them from using infant baptism, depriving 
their children of an ordinance by which no soul can 
prove that they cannot be profited, and through an 
unaccountable bigotry or carelessness withholding from 
them the privilege of even a nominal dedication to God ; 
and yet these very persons are ready enough to fly for a 
minister to baptize their child when they suppose it to 
be at the point of death ! It would be no crime to pray 
that such persons should never have the privilege of 
hearing "My father !" or "My mother !" from the lips 
of their own child. 

It is easy to carry things to extremes on the right hand 
and on the left. In this controversy there has been much 
asperity on all sides. It is high time this were ended. 
To say that water baptism is nothing, because a baptism 
of the Spirit is promised, is not correct. Baptism, how- 
ever administered, is a most important rite in the church 
of Christ. To say that sprinkling or aspersion is no 
gospel baptism is as incorrect as to say immersion is 
none. Such assertions are as unchristian as they are 
uncharitable ; and should be carefully avoided by all 
those who wish to promote the great design of the gos- 
pel, glory to God, and peace and good will among men. 
Lastly, to assert that infant baptism is unscriptural, is 
as rash and reprehensible as any of the rest. Myriads 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— BAPTISM. 255 

of conscientious people choose to dedicate their infants 
to God by public baptism. They are in the right ! — 
and, by acting thus, follow the general practice of the 
Jewish and Christian church — a practice from which it 
is as needless as it is dangerous to depart. 

Baptism is a standing proof of the divine authenticity 
of the Christian religion, and a seal of the truth of the 
doctrine of justification by faith, through the blood of 
the covenant. 

To the baptism of water a man was admitted when 
he became a proselyte to the Jewish religion ; and in 
this baptism he promised in the most solemn manner 
to renounce idolatry, to take the God of Israel for his 
God, and to have his life conformed to the precepts of 
the divine law. But the water which was used on the 
occasion was only an emblem of the Holy Ghost. The 
soul was considered as in a state of defilement, because 
of past sin; now, as by that water the body was 
washed, cleansed, and refreshed, so by the influences of 
the Holy Spirit the soul was to be purified from its de- 
filement, and strengthened to walk in the way of truth 
and holiness. 

When John came baptizing with water, he gave the 
Jews the plainest intimations that this would not suf- 
fice ; that it was only typical of that baptism of the 
Holy Ghost, under the similitude of fire, which they 
must all receive from Jesus Christ. Therefore our 
Lord asserts that a man must be born of water and the 
Holy Spirit, that is, of the Holy Ghost, which, repre- 
sented under the similitude of water, cleanses, refreshes, 
and purifies the soul. Reader, hast thou never had any 
other baptism than that of water ? If thou hast not had 
any other, take Jesus Christ's word for it, thou canst 
not in thy present state enter into the kingdom of God. 
I would not say to thee merely, " Read what it is to be 
born of the Spirit ;" but " pray, O pray to God in- 
cessantly till he give thee to feel what is implied in it !" 
Remember it is Jesus only who baptizes with the Holv 
Ghost. 



256 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE LORD'S SUPPER. 



XIX.— THE LORD'S SUPPER. 

"Do this in remembrance of me," is a command by 
which our blessed Lord has put both the affection and 
piety of his disciples to the test. If they love him they 
will keep his commandments, for, to them that love, 
his commandments are not grievous. It is a peculiar 
excellence of the gospel economy, that all the duties it 
enjoins become the highest privileges to those that 
obey. 

Among the ordinances prescribed by the gospel, that 
commonly called the "sacrament of the Lord's supper" 
has ever held a distinguished place ; and the church of 
Christ, in all ages, has represented the due religious 
celebration of it as a duty incumbent on every soul that 
professed faith in Jesus Christ, and sought for salvation 
through his blood alone. Hence, it was ever held in 
the highest estimation and reverence, and the great High 
Priest of his church has shown, by more than ordinary 
influences of his blessed Spirit on the souls of the faith- 
ful, that they had not mistaken his meaning, nor believed 
in vain, while, by eating of that bread, and drinking of 
that cup, they endeavoured to show forth his death, and 
realize the benefits to be derived from it. 

If any respect should be paid to the primitive institu- 
tion in the celebration of this divine ordinance, then un- 
leavened, unyeasted bread should be used. In every 
sign or type, the thing signifying or pointing out that 
which is beyond itself should either have certain pro- 
perties, or be accompanied with certain circumstances 
as impressive as possible of the things signified. Bread, 
simply considered in itself,, may be an emblem apt 
enough of the body of our Lord Jesus, which was given 
for us ; but the design of God was evidently that it 
should not only point out this, but also the disposition 
required in those who should celebrate both the antitype 
and the type ; and this the apostle explains to be sin- 
cerity and truth, the reverse of malice and wickedness. 
The very taste of the bread was instructive : it pointed 
out to every communicant that he who came to the table 
of God with malice or ill will against any soul of man, 
or with wickedness, a profligate or sinful life, might 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE LORD'S SUPPER. 257 

expect to eat and drink judgment to himself: as not dis- 
cerning that the Lord's body was sacrificed for this very 
purpose, that all sin might be destroyed. 

Blessing and touching the bread are merely popish 
ceremonies, unauthorized either by Scripture or the 
practice of the pure church of God; necessary of course 
to them who pretend to transmute, by a kind of spiritual 
incantation, the bread and wine into the real body and 
blood of Jesus Christ — a measure, the grossest in folly, 
and most stupid in nonsense, to which God in judgment 
ever abandoned the fallen spirit of man. 

The breaking of the bread I consider highly neces- 
sary to the proper performance of this solemn and sig- 
nificant ceremony, because this act was designed by our 
Lord to shadow forth the wounding, piercing, and break- 
ing of his body upon the cross ; and ail this was essen- 
tially necessary to the making a full atonement for the 
sin of the world ; so it is of vast importance that this 
apparently little circumstance, the breaking of the bread, 
should be carefully attended to, that the godly communi- 
cant may have every necessary assistance to enable him 
to discern the Lord's body while engaged in the most 
important and divine of all God's ordinances. 

I have learned, with extreme regret, that in many 
churches and chapels a vile compound, wickedly de- 
nominated wine, not the offspring of the vine, but of the 
alder, gooseberry, or currant tree, and not unfrequently 
the issue of the sweepings of a grocer's shop, is substi- 
tuted for wine, in the sacrament of the Lord's supper. 
That this is a most wicked and awful perversion of our 
Lord's ordinance, needs, I am persuaded, no proof. 

As the passover was to be celebrated annually, to 
keep the original transaction in memory, and to show 
forth the true paschal Lamb, the Lamb of God 'that 
taketh away the sin of the world, so after the once 
offering of Christ our passover on the cross, he himself 
ordained that bread and wine should be used to keep 
** that, his precious death, in remembrance, until his 
coming again." Now, as the paschal lamb, annually 
sacrificed, brought to the people's remembrance the won- 
derful deliverance of their fathers from the Egyptian 
bondage and tyranny ; so the bread and wine, conse- 
crated and received according to our Saviour Jesus 



258 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — THE LORD'S SUPPER. 

Christ's holy institution, was designed by himself to 
keep up a continual remembrance and lively representa- 
tion of the great atonement made by his death upon the 
cross. The doing this is not intended merely to keep 
up a recollection of Christ, as a kind and benevolent 
friend, which is the utmost some allow ; but to keep in 
remembrance his body broken for us, and his blood 
poured out for us. For as the way to the holiest was 
ever through his blood, and as no man can ever come to 
the Father but by him, and none can come profitably 
who have not faith in his blood ; it was necessary that 
this great help to believing should be frequently fur- 
nished ; as, in all succeeding ages, there would be sin- 
ners to be saved, and saints to be confirmed and esta- 
blished in their holy faith. Those, therefore, who reject 
the Lord's supper sin against their own mercies, and 
treat their Maker with the basest ingratitude. 

Let no man deceive his own soul by imagining he can 
still have all the benefits of Christ's death, and yet have 
nothing to do with the sacrament. It is a command of 
the living God, founded on the same authority as " Thou 
shalt do no murder;" none, therefore, can disobey it 
and be guiltless. Again : let no man impose on him- 
self by the supposition that he can enjoy this supper 
spiritually without using what too many impiously call 
the " carnal ordinance ;" that is, without eating bread 
and drinking wine in remembrance of the death of Christ. 
Is not this a delusion ? What says the sovereign will of 
God ? " Do this." What is this ? Why, " Take 
bread, break, and eat it. Take the cup and drink ye all 
of it." This, and only this, is fulfilling the will of God. 
Therefore the eating of the sacramental bread, and the 
drinking of the consecrated wine, are essential to the 
religious performance of our Lord's command. 

Every institution has its letter as well as its spirit, as 
every word must refer to something of which it is the 
sign or signification. The gospel has both its letter and 
its spirit; and multitudes of professing Christians, by 
resting in the letter, receive not the life which it is cal- 
culated to impart. Water, in baptism, is the letter that 
points out the purification of the soul ; they who rest in 
the letter are without this purification, and, dying in that 
state, they die eternally. Bread and wine, in the sacra- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE LORD S SUPPER. 259 

ment of the Lord's supper, are the letter ; the atoning 
efficacy of the death of Jesus, and the grace communi- 
cated by this to the soul of a believer, are the spirit. 
Multitudes rest in this letter, simply receiving these 
symbols without reference to the atonement or to their 
guilt ; and thus lose the benefit of the atonement and 
the salvation of their souls. 

Improper communicants are in a very awful state. 
These may be divided into two classes : the inconsi- 
derate and the ungodly. Of the former class, there are 
multitudes among the different societies of Christians. 
They know not the Lord, and discern not the operation 
of his hands : hence they go to the Lord's table from a 
mere sense of duty or propriety, without considering 
what the sacred elements represent, and without feeling 
any hunger after the bread that endureth unto eternal 
life. These really profane the ordinance, either by not 
devoting it to the end of its institution, or by perverting 
that end. Among these may probably be ranked those 
who believe not in the vicarious sufferings and death of 
the blessed Redeemer. They also receive the Lord's 
supper ; but they do it as a testimony of respect and 
friendly remembrance : these do not discern the Lord's 
body, do not see that this bread represents his body 
which was broken for them, and his blood which w T as 
spilled for the remission of sins. 

Of the ungodly, as comprehending transgressors of 
all descriptions, little need be said in proof of their un- 
worthiness. Such, coming to the table of the Lord, eat 
and drink their own condemnation ; as they profess by 
this religious act to acknowledge the virtue of that blood 
which cleanseth from all unrighteousness, while them- 
selves are slaves of sin. None such should ever be per- 
mitted to approach the table of the Lord; if they, 
through that gross ignorance which is the closely 
wedded companion of profligacy, are intent on their own 
destruction, let the ministers of God see that the ordi- 
nance be not profaned by the admission of such disre- 
putable and iniquitous guests. For can it be expected 
that God will manifest his approbation when the pale of 
his sanctuary is broken down ; and the beasts of the 
forest introduced into the holy of holies ! 

It may be here asked, " Who then should approach 



260 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE LORD 6 SUPPER. 

this awful ordinance?" I answer, 1. Every believer in 
Christ Jesus who is saved from his sins has a right to 
come. Such are of the family of God ; and this bread 
belongs to the children. On this there can be but one 
opinion. 2. Every genuine penitent is invited to come, 
and consequently has a right, because he needs the 
atoning blood ; and by this ordinance, the blood shed 
for the remission of sins is expressly represented. 
" But I am not worthy." And who is 1 There is not a 
saint upon earth, nor an archangel in heaven, who is 
worthy to sit down at the table of the Lord. None are 
excluded but the impenitent, the transgressors, and the 
profane. Believers, however weak, have a right to 
come; and the strongest in faith need the grace of this 
ordinance. Penitents should come, as all the promises 
of pardon mentioned in the Bible are made to such ; and 
he that is athirst may take of the water of life freely. 
None is worthy of the entertainment, though all these 
will partake of it worthily ; but it is freely provided by 
Him who is the Lamb of God, who was slain for us, and 
is worthy to receive glory and majesty, dominion and 
power, for ever and ever. 

Every soul who washes not to abjure his right to the 
benefits of Christ's passion and death, should make it a 
point with God and his conscience to partake of this 
ordinance, if not twelve times, at least four or six times 
in the year ; and continue thus to show forth the Lord's 
death till he come. 

The accredited minister, the man who was set apart 
according to the custom of his community, was the only 
person who was ever conceived to have a right to ad- 
minister this ordinance ; as he alone could judge of 
the persons who were proper to be admitted. Where 
private persons have assumed this important function, 
they have brought the ordinance of God into contempt ; 
and they, and their deluded partisans, have generally 
ended in confusion and apostacy. 

Not only the sacred elements should be of the purest 
and best quality, but also the holy vessels, of whatever 
metal, perfectly clean, and decently arranged on the 
table. The communicants, in receiving the bread and 
wine, should not be hurried, so as to endanger their 
dropping the one or spilling the other; as accidents of 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY THE LORD S SUPPER. 20 1 

this kind have been of dreadful consequence to some 
weak minds. No communicant should receive with a 
glove on : this is indecent, not to say irreverent. Per- 
haps the best way of receiving the bread is, to open the 
hand, and let the minister lay it upon the palm, whence 
it may be taken by the communicant with readiness and 
ease. 

In the apparatus of this feast, a contribution for the 
support of the poor should never be neglected. This 
was a custom religiously observed from the very 
remotest antiquity of the Christian era. 

A few reasons for frequenting the table of the Lord, 
and profiting by this ordinance : — 

1. Jesus Christ has commanded his disciples to do 
this in remembrance of him ; and, were there no other 
reason, this certainly must be deemed sufficient by all 
those who respect his authority as their Teacher and 
Judge. 

2. As the oft-repeated sacrifices in the Jewish church, 
and particularly the passover, were intended to point out 
the Son of God till he came ; so, it appears, our blessed 
Lord designed that the eucharist should be a principal 
means of keeping in remembrance his passion and death; 
and thus show forth Him who has died for our offences, 
as the others did Him who in the fulness of time should 
die. 

3. As it is the duty of every Christian to receive the 
holy eucharist, so it is the duty of every Christian minis- 
ter to see that the people of God neither neglect nor 
lose sight of this ordinance. 

4. It is a standing and inexpugnable proof of the 
authenticity of the Christian religion. 

In this place a question of very great importance 
should be considered : is the ungodliness of the minister 
any prejudice to the ordinance itself, or to the devout 
communicant? I answer, 1. None who is ungodly 
should ever be permitted to minister in holy things, on 
any pretence whatever ; and in this ordinance, in parti- 
cular, no unhallowed hand should ever be seen. 2. As 
the benefit to be derived from the eucharist depends 
entirely on the presence and blessing of God, it cannot 
be reasonably expected that he will work through the 
instrumentality of the profligate or the profane. Many 



262 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY HUSBAND AND WIFE. 

have idled away their time in endeavouring to prove 
" that the ungodliness of the minister is no prejudice to 
the worthy communicant;" but God has disproved this 
by ten thousand instances, in which he has, in a general 
way, withheld his divine influence, because of the wick- 
edness or worthlessness of him who ministered, whether 
bishop, priest, minister, or preacher. 

Profanity and sin will certainly prevent the divine 
Spirit from realizing the sign in the souls of worthless 
ministers and sinful communicants ; but the want of 
episcopal ordination in the person, or consecration in 
the place, can never prevent Him who is not confined 
to temples made by hands, and who sends by whom he 
will send, from pouring out his Spirit upon those who 
call "faithfully upon his name, and who go to meet him 
in his appointed ways. 

I should prefer the sacrament to be administered in 
our form. We must yield a little in innocent matters 
to inveterate prejudice, but keep as near to our plan as 
you possibly can. Methodism in Scotland was ruined 
by building it by a Presbyterian model. Keep this in 
your eye. You should by all means give the sacrament 
to all united with you : do not send them elsewhere to 
receive it. May the holy Trinity have you in his 
continual keeping ! 

Scarcely any thing is more unbecoming than to see 
the majority -of communicants, as soon as they have 
received, posting out of the church or chapel; so that 
at the conclusion of the ordinance very few are found to 
join together in a general thanksgiving to God for the 
benefits conferred by the passion and death of Christ by 
means of this blessed ordinance. 



XX.— HUSBAND AND WIFE. 

" A man shall leave," wholly give up, " both father 
and mother ;" the matrimonial union being more inti- 
mate and binding than even paternal or filial affection : 
and shall be closely united ; shall be firmly cemented 
to his wife : a beautiful metaphor, which most forcibly 
intimates that nothing but death can separate them : as 
a well glued board will break sooner in the whole wood 
than in the glued joint. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY HUSBAND AND WIFE. 2G3 

" And they twain shall be one flesh :" not only mean- 
ing that they should be considered as one body, but also 
as two souls in one body, with a complete union of 
interests, and an indissoluble partnership of life and 
fortune, comfort and support, desires and inclinations, 
joys and sorrows. 

Here is a grand rule, according to which every hus- 
band is called to act : " Love your wife as Christ loved 
the church." But how did Christ love the church ? " He 
gave himself for it :" he laid down his life for it. So 
then husbands should, if necessary, lay down their lives 
for their wives : and there is more implied in the words 
than mere protection and support ; for, as Christ gave 
himself for the church to save it, so husbands should, 
by all means in their power, labour to promote the 
salvation of their wives and their constant edification 
in righteousness. Thus we find that the authority of 
the man over the woman is founded on his love to her, 
and this love must be such as to lead him to risk his life 
for her. As the care of the family devolves on the 
wife, and the children must owe the chief direction of 
their minds and formation of their manners to the 
mother, she has need of all the assistance and support 
which her husband can give her ; and if she perforins 
her duty well, she deserves the utmost of his love and 
affection. 

The husband is to love his wife, the wife to obey and 
venerate her husband ; love and protection on the one 
hand, affectionate submission and fidelity on the other. 
The husband should provide for his wife without encou- 
raging profuseness ; watch over her conduct without 
giving her vexation ; keep her in subjection without 
making her a slave ; love *her without jealousy ; oblige 
her without flattery; honour her without making her 
proud ; and be hers entirely, without becoming either her 
footman or her slave. In short, they have equal rights 
and equal claims; but superior strength gives the man 
dominion ; affection and subjection entitle the woman 
to love and protection. Without the woman, man is but 
half a human being ; in union with the man, the woman 
finds her safety and perfection. 

How few wives feel it their duty to pray to God to 
give them grace to behave as wives ! How few hus- 



264 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY HUSBAND AND WIFE. 

bands pray for the grace suited to their situation that 
they may be able to fulfil its duties ! The like may be 
said of children, parents, servants, and masters. As 
every situation in life has its peculiar duties, trials, &c, 
so to every situation there is peculiar grace appointed. 
No man can fulfil the duties of any station without the 
grace suited to that station. The grace suited to him, 
as a member of society in general, will not be sufficient 
for him as a husband, father, or master. Many proper 
marriages become unhappy in the end, because the 
parties have not earnestly besought God for the grace 
necessary for them as husbands and wives. This is the 
origin of family broils in general ; and a proper attention 
to the apostle's advice would prevent them all. 

Those who imagine they can encounter the cares of 
life with just the same measure of grace which was suf- 
ficient for them in a single state, will find themselves 
greatly mistaken. For to every situation in life peculiar 
and suitable grace is requisite. Most new-married peo- 
ple, even among those who are religious, think nothing 
of this. Hence it is often found that the new-married 
pair soon decline in the divine life ; and, instead of 
getting forward, either go halting in the heavenly road, 
or turn back to the world. 

I am perfectly of Solomon's opinion, that "he who 
findeth a wife findeth a good thing." Even in any 
circumstances, matrimony is better than celibacy; and 
hence I execrate the addition made here by the Tar- 
gum, and some other would-be menders of the word of 
God, who have added " good ;" a truth, indeed, that a 
child could have told ; a truism and an actum agere 
very unworthy of the wisdom of Solomon ; for most 
assuredly he that finds a good thing finds a good thing. 
Please to enter this beautiful criticism in your adver- 
saria. 

God pronounces the state of celibacy to be a bad 
state, or, if the reader please, u not a good one :" " And 
the Lord God said, It is not good for man to be alone." 
This is God's judgment. Councils, and fathers, and 
doctors, and synods have given a different judgment ; 
but on such a subject they are worthy of no attention. 
The word of God abideth for ever. God made the 
woman for the man, and thus he has shown us that 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV HUSBAND AND WIFE. 265 

every son of Adam should be united to a daughter of 
Eve to the end of the world. God made the woman 
out of the man, to intimate that the closest union and 
the most affectionate attachment should subsist in the 
matrimonial connection ; so that the man should ever 
consider and treat the woman as a part of himself; and 
as no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and 
supports it, so should a man deal with his wife ; and 
on the other hand, the woman should consider that the 
man was not made for her, but that she was made for 
tne man, and derived, under God, her being from him : 
therefore the wife should see that she reverence her 
husband. Gen. ii, 23, 24, contain the very words of 
the marriage ceremony : a This is flesh of my flesh, and 
bone of mv bone : therefore shall a man leave his father 
and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife, and they 
two shall be one flesh." How happy must such a state 
be where God's institution is properly regarded, when 
the parties are married, as the apostle expresses it, " in 
the Lord ;" when each, by acts of the tenderest kind- 
ness, lives only to prevent the wishes, and contribute 
in every possible way to_ the comfort and happiness of 
the other ! Marriage might still be what it was in its 
original institution, pure and suitable ; and in its first 
exercise, affectionate and happy : but how few such 
marriages are there to be found ! Passion, turbulent 
and irregular, not relic-ion ; custom founded by these 
irregularities, not reason : worldlv prospects, originating 
and ending in selfishness and earthly affections, not in 
spiritual ends, are the sfrand producing; causes of the 
great majority of matrimonial alliances. How then can 
such turbid and bitter fountains send forth pure and 
sweet waters ? 

Unfitness of minds, more than circumstances, is what 
in genera] mars the marriage union. Where minds are 
suited, means of happiness and contentment are ever 
within reach. 

I scruple not to say that those who marry for money 
are committing adultery as long as they live. 

A conversation on board ship between Leith and 
Lerwick. — " How is it,'* says one, " that the most simple 
and unadorned rings are used in the matrimonial cere- 
monv?" — "Because, I believe, the canon law requires 

12 



26Q CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY HUSBAND AND WIFE. 

that no other should be used." — A. C. " I am not aware 
that there is any law on this part of the subject. The 
law states that a metal ring shall be used, and not one 
of leather, straw, thread, <k.c. ; and the reason to me 
appears to be this : — The ring itself points out the dura- 
tion of the union ; it is without end in reference to the 
natural lives of the parties. Metal is less liable to 
destruction than flax, leather, straw, &c. Gold is 
generally preferred, not only because it is the most 
precious, but the most perfect of metals, being less liable 
to destruction or deterioration by oxydisement. Life 
will wear out by labours, trials, &c. ; and so will gold 
by attrition, frequent use, &lc. Therefore, life and the 
metal shadow forth each other, properly enough. As 
to the ring being simple and unadorned, I think it has 
its reason in the case itself, and in the feelings and 
apprehension of the spouse who produces it. He has 
chosen, according to his feelings, one whom he esteems 
the most perfect of her kind : she is to him superior to 
every other female, adorned with every charm. To 
use then, in this state of the case, any ornament, would 
be a tacit confession that her person was defective, and 
needed something to set it off, and must be more or less 
dependant on the feeble aid of dress." — Mrs. Frembly. 
" But, sir, there is soon added what is called a guard ; 
and this is, if circumstances will admit, highly orna- 
mented with pearls or brilliants." — A. C. " True, 
madam ; and this is not without much signification. 
The unadorned ring supposes the fact of the bride's 
great superiority as already mentioned, and her suitable 
feelings toward her spouse ; but the guard is afterward 
added. In order to preserve this perfection, the hus- 
band feels it necessary to add ornaments to the union, 
that is, endearments, attentions, and obligations, to keep 
his wife steady to the character which he has given her 
to assume ; and without attention to the support of the 
character, and the continuance of endearing conduct, he 
knows the progress of married life will soon remove all 
false or too sanguine expectations of each other's cha- 
racter. The bubble, if it were one, would soon burst ; 
animosities and mutual recriminations would soon im- 
bitter wedded life, and show how false and empty the 
high-formed estimation and expectations of each other 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 267 

were at the beginning. Thus the guard, as well as the 

ring, are not without their respective significations." 

XXL— PARENTS AND CHILDREN.* 

To many God gives children "in place of temporal 
good. To many others he gives houses, lands, and 
thousands of gold and silver ; and with them the womb 
that beareth not; and these are their inheritance. The 
poor man has from God a number of children, without 
lands or money ; these are his inheritance : and God 
shows himself their Father, feeding and supporting them 
by a chain of miraculous providences. Where is the 
poor man who would give up his six children, with the 
prospect of having more, for the thousands or millions 
of him who is the centre of his own existence ; and has 
neither root nor branch, but his forlorn solitary self, 
upon the face of the earth? Let the fruitful family, 
however poor, lay this to heart : " Children are a he- 
ritage of the Lord ; and the fruit of the womb is his 
reward." And he who gave them will feed them : for 
it is a fact, and the maxim formed on it has never failed : 
"Wherever God sends mouths he sends meat." "Mur- 
mur not," said an Arab to his friend, " because thy 
family is large ; know that it is for their sakes that God 
feeds thee." 

Education is generally defined, " that series of means 
by which the human understanding is gradually enlight- 
ened, and the dispositions of the heart are corrected, 
formed, and brought forth between early infancy and 
the period when a young person is considered as quali- 
fied to take a part in active life." Whole nations have 
been corrupted, enfeebled, and destroyed, through the 
want of proper education : through this, multitudes of 
families have degenerated; and a countless number of 
individuals have come to an untimely end. Parents who 
neglect this, neglect the present and eternal interests of 
their offspring. 

A spirit of inquiry is common to every child. The 
human heart is ever panting after knowledge; and if 

* The reading of Dr. Clarke's interesting " Memoirs of the 
Wesley Family," by all parents and hildren, has my warmest 
recommendation.— S. D. 



268 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 

not rightly directed when young, will, like that of our 
first mother, go astray after forbidden science. If we 
wish our children to be happy, we should show them 
where happiness is to be found. If we wish them to be 
wise, we should lead them unto God, by means of his 
word and ordinances. It is natural for a child to inquire, 
" What do you mean by this baptism? by this sacrament? 
by praying? by singing psalms and hymns ?" &c. And 
what fine opportunities do such questions give pious and 
intelligent parents to instruct their children in every 
article of the Christian faith, and every fact on which 
these articles are established ! O why is this neglected, 
while the command of God is before our eyes, and the 
importance of the measure so strikingly obvious ? 

A child should be taught what is necessary for it to 
know, as soon as that necessity exists, and the child is 
capable of learning. Among children there is a great 
disparity of intellect, and in the power of apprehension 
and comprehension. Many children have such a pre- 
cocity of intellect as to be more capable of learning to 
read at two than others are at five years of age : and it 
would be high injustice indeed to prevent them from 
acquiring much useful knowledge and some hundreds, 
if not thousands of ideas, by waiting for a prescribed 
term of " five" years. When a child is capable of 
learning any thing, give that teaching : but let the teach- 
ing be regularly graduated ; let it go on from step to step, 
never obliging it to learn what it cannot yet comprehend. 
We begin very properly with letters, or the elementary 
signs of language ; teach the child to distinguish them 
from each other, and give them in their names some 
notion of their power. We then teach them to combine 
them into simple syllables ; syllables into words ; words 
into sentences; sentences into speeches, or regular dis- 
course. This process is as philosophic as it is natural : 
but who follows it through the successive steps of 
education ? Scarcely any. Because a child can under- 
stand a little, and shows aptness in learning, parental 
fondness, or the teacher's ignorance, comes into powerful 
operation; and the child is pushed unnaturally forward 
to departments of learning to which it has not been gra- 
dually inducted. The mind is puzzled and bewildered ; 
a great gulf is left behind which cuts off all connection 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 269 

with what has been already learned, and what is now 
proposed to the understanding ; and the issue is, the 
child is confounded and discouraged, and falls either 
under the power of hebetude, or learns superficially, 
and never becomes a correct scholar. A child must 
understand what it is doing before it can do what it 
ought. 

"A young saint, an old devil," was a maxim of such 
unaccountable prevalence formerly, that even parents 
have been afraid to discover any tendency to early piety 
in their children, lest the proverb should be verified in 
them : and I have known some who, in their tender 
years, deeply feared God, who were afraid to encourage 
such heavenly feelings, lest they should be a prelude to 
their endless perdition ! On this very ground piety to 
God was rarely cultivated on the infant mind ; and both 
parents and teachers thought it best to instruct children 
in their simple duties, without showing the basis on 
which they should rest, or the spring from which they 
should flow. Hence, though they were generally taught 
what God had done for their souls, they were seldom, 
if at all, shown what God must do in them, in order to 
their being saved unto eternal life. 

It is not to be wondered at, that infant piety was for- 
merly very rare, when we consider the influence of the 
above diabolic proverb, with the general listlessness of 
parents, who were glad to omit duties which they found 
little disposition to perform, under the apprehension that 
early piety would most likely degenerate, in advanced 
life, into a more than ordinary degree of profligacy or 
irreligion. 

A most injurious and destructive maxim has lately 
been advanced by a few individuals, which it is to be 
hoped is disowned by the class of Christians to which 
they belong, though the authors affect to be thought 
Christians, and rational ones too. The sum of the 
maxim is this : " Children ought not to be taught re- 
ligion, for fear of having their minds biased to some 
particular creed ; but they should be left to themselves 
till they are capable of making a choice, and choose to 
make one." This maxim is in flat opposition to the 
command of God, and those who teach it show how lit- 
tle they are affected by the religion they profess. If 



270 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 

they felt it to be good for any thing, they would certainly 
wish their children to possess it ; but they do not teach 
religion to their children, because they feel it to be of 
no use to themselves. Now, the Christian religion pro- 
perly applied saves the soul, and fills the heart with love 
to God and man ; for the love of God is shed abroad in 
the heart of a genuine believer by the Holy Ghost given 
to him. These persons have no such love, because 
they have not the religion that inspires it ; and the 
spurious religion which admits of the maxim above 
mentioned is not the religion of God, and consequently 
better untaught than taught. But what can be said of 
those parents who, possessing a better faith, equally 
neglect the instruction of their children in the things of 
God? They are highly criminal ; and if their children 
perish through neglect, which is very probable, what a 
dreadful account must they give in the great day ! 
Parents ! hear what the Lord saith unto you : Ye shall 
diligently teach your children that there is one Lord, 
Jehovah, Elohim ; the Father, the Son, and the Holy 
Ghost ; and that they must love him with all their heart, 
with all their soul, and with all their might. And as 
children are heedless, apt to forget, liable to be carried 
away by sensible things ; repeat and rerepeat the instruc- 
tion, and add line upon line, precept upon precept, here 
a little and there a little, carefully studying time, place, 
and circumstances, that your labour be not in vain: 
show it in its amiableness, excite attention by exciting 
interest ; show how good, how useful, how blessed, how 
ennobling, how glorious it is. Whet these things on 
their hearts, till the keenest edge is raised on the 
strongest desire, till they can say, " Whom have I in 
heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I 
desire beside thee !" 

Initiate the child at the opening of his path. When 
he comes to the opening of the way of life, being able to 
walk alone, and to choose ; stop at this entrance, and 
begin a series of instructions, how he is to conduct him- 
self in every step he takes. Show him the duties, the 
dangers, and the blessings of the path ; give him direc- 
tions how to perform the duties, how to escape the 
dangers, and how to secure the blessings, which all lie 
before him. Fix these on his mind by daily inculcation. 






CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 271 

till their impression is become indelible : then lead him 
to practice by slow and almost imperceptible degrees, till 
each indelible impression becomes a strongly radicated 
habit. Beg incessantly the blessing of God on all this 
teaching and discipline; and then you have obeyed the 
injunction ot' the wisest of men. Nor is there any like- 
lihood that such impressions shall ever be effaced, and 
that such habits shall ever be destroyed. 

Teach a child that " whom the Lord loveth he chasten- 
eth." Teach him that God suffers men to hunger and 
be in want, that he may try them if they will be faithful, 
and do them good in their latter end. Teach him that 
he who patiently and meekly bears providential afflic- 
tion shall be relieved and exalted in due time. Teach 
him that it is no sin to die in the most abject poverty 
and affliction, brought on in the course of divine pro- 
vidence ; but that any attempts to alter his condition by 
robbery, knavery, cozening, and fraud, will be distin- 
guished with heavy curses from the Almighty, and 
necessarily end in perdition and ruin. A child thus 
educated is not likely to abandon himself to unlawful 
courses. 

We do not know of how much religious instruction 
our little ones are capable. Nothing of this kind, 
rightly spoken and suitably recommended, is lost. A 
child seldom forgets any thing by which it is interested. 
In the morning sow thy seed : speak to them lovingly ; 
instruct them affectionately; encourage them power- 
fully ; upbraid them as little as possible ; and commend 
them as much as you can. Tell them about Jesus : and 
how he loves them : and what he has done for them ; 
and what he will do in them ; and how happy he will 
eternally make them ! No tale affects the heart so 
much, whether of old or young, as that of Christ cruci- 
fied ; — and, let me add, there is no tale that God will 
bless so much as this ; for there is nothing else that is, 
or can be, the power of God unto salvation. He was 
delivered for our offences ; he rose again for our justifi- 
cation ; and ever liveth to make intercession for us ! 
How unspeakable is his mercy ! How boundless is his 
grace ! 

How powerful are the effects of a religious education, 
enforced by pious example ! It is one of God's especial 



272 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 

means of grace. Let a man only do justice to his family, 
by bringing them up in the fear of God, and he will 
crown it with his blessing. How many excuse the pro- 
fligacy of their family, which is often entirely owing to 
their own neglect, by saying, " O we cannot give them 
grace !" No, you cannot; but you can afford them the 
means of grace. This is your work, that is the Lord's. 
If, through your neglect of precept and example, they 
perish, what an awful account must you give to the 
Judge of quick and dead ! It was the sentiment of a 
great man, that should the worst of times arrive, and 
magistracy and ministry were both to fail, yet, if parents 
would be faithful to their trust, pure religion would be 
handed down to posterity, both in its form and in its 
power. 

Early habits are not easily rooted out, especially those 
of a bad kind. Next to the influence and grace of the 
Spirit of God is a good and religious education. Parents 
should teach their children to despise and abhor low 
cunning, to fear a lie, and tremble at an oath ; and, in 
order to be successful, they should illustrate their pre- 
cepts by their own regular and conscientious example. 

It is no wonder that the great mass of children are so 
wicked when so few are put under the care of Christ by 
humble, praying, believing parents. 

Were a proper line of conduct pursued in the educa- 
tion of children, how few profligate sons and daughters, 
and how few broken-hearted parents should we find ! 
The neglect of early religious education, connected with 
a wholesome and affectionate restraint, is the ruin of 
millions. Many parents, to excuse their indolence and 
most criminal neglect, say, " We cannot give our chil- 
dren grace." What do they mean by this ? That God, 
not themselves, is the Author of the irregularities and 
viciousness of their children ! They may shudder at 
this imputation ; but when they reflect that they have 
not given them right precepts ; have not brought them 
under firm and affectionate restraint; have not shown 
them, by their own spirit, temper, and conduct, how 
they should be regulated in theirs ; when either the 
worship of God has not been established in their houses, 
or they have permitted their children, on the most 
trifling pretences, to absent themselves from it : when all 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 273 

these things are considered, they will find that, speaking 
after the manner of men, it would have been a very 
extraordinary miracle indeed if the children had been 
found preferring a path in which they did not see their 
parents conscientiously tread. Let those parents who 
continue to excuse themselves by saying, "We cannot 
give grace to our children," lay their hand on their con- 
science, and say whether they ever knew an instance 
where God withheld his grace while they were, in hum- 
ble subserviency to him, performing their duty 1 The 
real state of the case is this : parents cannot do God's 
work, and God will not do theirs ; but, if they use the 
means, and train up the child in the way he should go, 
God will never withhold his blessing. 

It is not parental fondness nor parental authority, 
taken separately, that can produce this beneficial effect 
A father may be as fond of his offspring as Eli was, and 
his children be sons of Belial: he may be as authori- 
tative as the Grand Turk, and his children despise and 
plot rebellion against him. But let parental authority 
be tempered with fatherly affection ; and let the rein 
of discipline be steadily held by this powerful but affec- 
tionate hand ; and there shall the pleasure of God 
prosper ; there will he give his blessing, even life for 
evermore. Many fine families have been spoiled, and 
many ruined, by the separate exercise of these two 
principles. Parental affection, when alone, infallibly 
degenerates into foolish fondness ; and parental autho- 
rity frequently degenerates into brutal tyranny when 
standing by itself. The first sort of parents will be 
loved, without being respected ; the second sort will be 
dreaded, without either respect or esteem. In the first 
case obedience is not exacted, and is therefore felt to 
be unnecessary, as offences of great magnitude pass 
without punishment or reprehension. In the second 
case, rigid exaction renders obedience almost impos- 
sible ; and the smallest delinquency is often punished 
with the extreme of torture, which, hardening the 
mind, renders duty a matter of perfect indifference. 
Parents, lay these things to heart: remember Eli and 
his sons ; remember the dismal end of both ! Teach 
your children to fear God ; use wholesome discipline ; 
be determined ; begin in time ; mingle severity and mercy 
12* 



274 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 

together in all your conduct; and earnestly pray to God 
to second your godly discipline with the power and 
grace of his Spirit. 

" Fathers, provoke not your children to wrath :" 
avoid all severity ; this will hurt your own souls, and 
do them no good ; on the contrary, if punished with 
severity or cruelty, they will only be hardened and 
made desperate in their sins. Cruel parents generally 
have bad children. He who corrects his children 
according to God and reason will feel every blow on 
his own heart more sensibly than his child feels it on 
his body. Parents are called to correct, not to punish, 
their children. Those who punish them do it from a 
principle of revenge ; those who correct them do it 
from a principle of affectionate concern 

Mrs. Wesley taught her children from their earliest 
age their duty to their parents. She had little difficulty 
in breaking their wills, or reducing them to absolute 
subjection. They were early brought by rational means 
under a mild yoke ; they were perfectly obsequious 
to their parents; and were taught to wait their decision 
in every thing they were to have, and in every thing 
they were to perform. They were taught also to ask a 
blessing upon their food, to behave quietly at family 
prayers, and to reverence the Sabbath. They were 
never permitted to command the servants, or to use any 
words of authority in their addresses to them. Mrs. 
"Wesley charged the servants to do nothing for any of 
the children unless they asked it with humility and re- 
spect : and the children were duly informed that the 
servants had such orders. This is the foundation, and 
indeed the essence, of good breeding. Insolent, impu- 
dent, and disagreeable children are to be met with 
everywhere ; because this simple, but important, mode 
of bringing up is neglected. " Molly, Robert, be pleased 
to do so and so," was the usual method of request both 
from the sons and the daughters ; and because the chil- 
dren behaved thus decently, the domestics reverenced 
and loved them ; were strictly attentive, and felt it a 
privilege to serve them. They were never permitted to 
contend with each other : whatever differences arose 
the parents were the umpires, and their decision was 
never disputed. The consequence was, there were few 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 275 

misunderstandings among them, and no unbrotherly 
and vindictive passions ; and they had the common 
fame of being the most loving family in the county of 
Lincoln ! How much evil may be prevented, and how 
much good may be done, by judicious management in the 
education of children ! Mrs. Wesley never considered 
herself discharged from the care of her children. Into 
all situations she followed them with her prayers and 
counsels ; and her sons, even when at the university, 
found the utility of her wise and parental instructions. 
They proposed to her all their doubts, and consulted 
her in all difficulties. 

I consider the time spent at boarding; school in teach- 
ing girls music, drawing, painting, and dancing, as al- 
most totally lost. Reason and the necessities of the 
case, if consulted, would dictate that young women 
should be taught such things as might fit them for social 
and domestic life. But this is so far from being the 
case, that, when married, they are generally found 
utterly ignorant of the several duties incumbent on 
them ; therefore the expectations of the husband are 
disappointed ; he finds to his sorrow that the fine, well 
bred young lady knows better how to play on the harp- 
sichord, drop a courtesy, sketch a landscape, or paint a 
rose, than to behave herself as a wife and mother, or 
conduct her domestic affairs with discretion. All these 
things, therefore, should be considered so many useless 
conformities to the world, which can be of no advan- 
tage in the most important departments and relations 
of life. 

It is easier for most men to walk with a perfect heart 
in the church, or even in the world, than in their own 
families. How many are as meek as lambs among 
others, when at home they are wasps or tigers ! The 
man who, in the midst of family provocations, main- 
tains a Christian character, being meek, gentle, and 
long suffering, to his wife, children, and his servants, 
has got a perfect heart, and adorns the doctrine of God 
his Saviour in all things. 

How can that family expect the blessing of God where 
the worship of God is not daily performed ? No won- 
der their servants are wicked, their children profligate, 
and their goods cursed. What an awful reckoning shall 



278 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 

such heads of families have with the Judge in the great 
day, who have refused to petition for that mercy which 
they might have had for asking! 

How ruinous are family distractions ! A house divided 
against itself cannot stand. Parents should take good 
heed that their own conduct be not the first and most 
powerful cause of such dissensions, by exciting envy in 
some of their children through undue partiality to 
others : but it is in vain to speak to most parents on the 
subject ; they will give way to foolish predilections, 
till, in the prevailing distractions of their families, they 
meet with the punishment of their imprudence, when 
regrets are vain, and the evil past remedy. 

It may not be well in general for parents to tell their 
children of their former failings or vices, as this might 
lessen their authority or respect, and the children might 
make a bad use of it in the extenuation of their own 
sins. But there are certain cases which, from the 
nature of their circumstances, may often occur, where a 
candid acknowledgment, with suitable advice, may pre- 
vent those children from repeating the evil ; but this 
should be done with great delicacy and caution, lest 
even the advice itself should serve as an incentive to 
the evil. 

Sovereign of the heavens and of the earth, behold 
this my daughter on the anniversary of her birthday ! 
I bring her especially before thee ; fill her with thy 
light, life, and power ; as in thee she lives, moves, and 
has her being, so may she ever live to thee. Strengthen 
her, O thou Almighty ! Instruct and counsel her, O 
thou Omniscient! Be her prop, her stay, her shield, 
and her Lord. Put all her enemies under her feet; 
deck her with glory and honour ; make her an example 
to her family, a pattern of piety to her friends, a solace 
to the poor, and a teacher of wisdom to those who are 
ignorant and out of the way; and on all her glory let 
there be a defence to preserve, and in every respect to 
render it efficient ! By her may thy name ever be 
glorified ; and in her may the most adorable Saviour 
ever see the travail of his soul and be satisfied. Amen, 
amen ! So be it ! and let her heart hear and feel thy 
amen, which is, So it shall be — hallelujah. 

Wo to those parents who strive, for filthy lucre's sake, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 2?7 

to prevent their son from embracing; a call to preach 
Jesus to their perishing countrymen, or to the heathen, 
because they see that the life of a true evangelist is a 
life of comparative poverty; and they would rather he 
should gain money than save souls. 

How strange is the infatuation, in some parents, which 
leads them to desire worldly or ecclesiastical honours 
for their children ! He must be much in love with the 
cross who wishes to have his child a minister of the 
gospel; for, if he be such as God approves of in the 
work, his life will be a life of toil and suffering ; he will 
be obliged to sip, at least, if not to drink largely of the 
cup of Christ. We know not what we ask when, in 
getting our children into the church, we take upon our- 
selves to answer for their call to the sacred office, and 
for the salvation of the souls that are put under their 
care. Blind parents ! rather let your children beg their 
bread than thrust them into an office to which God has 
not called them ; and in which they will not only ruin 
their souls, but be the means of damnation to hundreds; 
for, if God has not sent them, they shall not profit the 
people at all. 

We may easily learn from the child what the man 
will be. In general they give indications of those trades 
and callings for which they are adapted by nature. 
And, on the whole, we cannot go by a surer guide in 
preparing our children for future life than by observing 
their early propensities. The future engineer is seen in 
the little handicraftsman of two years old. Many chil- 
dren are crossed in these early propensities to a particu- 
lar calling, to their great prejudice, and the loss of their 
parents ; as they seldom settle at, or make much out at, 
the business to which they are tied, and to which nature 
has given them no tendency. These infantine predilec- 
tions to particular callings, we should consider as indi- 
cations of divine providence, and its calling them to that 
work for which they are peculiarly fitted. 

I have no high opinion of Polyglot businesses, though 
I am an admirer of Polyglot Bibles. A chymist, a 
druggist, a grocer, a bookseller, are too much at once. 
A chymist, if properly understood, is a business of 
science and practice, sufficient to occupy the whole of a 
man's life. A chymist is a student by fire, and his eyes 



278 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 

should ever be awake to behold the operations of nature, 
and the synthesis and analysis of endlessly varied sub- 
stances, which require such an accuracy of observation, 
and such a patience of investigation, in order to find out 
all the double and single multitudinous elective attrac- 
tions as would require the attention of a first-rate mind. 
As a druggist, he should understand the chymical nature 
and actions of all simples that enter into the composition 
of the whole materia medica, and the proper method 
of dispensing the recipes of physicians. As to a grocer, 
whether he be a wholesale or retail person in that line, 
he requires not only a knowledge of the simples in which 
he deals, but also an acquaintance with the state of the 
commercial relations of his own country with those of 
the nations with which we hold commercial traffic and 
trade, each of which requires particular knowledge. 
Now, as to the bookselling, it is a science as well as a 
trade, of great extent and difficulty. The man who'pro- 
fesses it should have an accurate knowledge of the whole 
operations of typography, compositions of papers and 
inks, of spacing, pointing, registering, &c. ; and, in 
short, of bibliography, without which he cannot give a 
proper character of a book ; be enabled to point out the 
characteristics of a good from a bad, a genuine from a 
spurious edition, and be able to judge of the merits of 
the different editions. I might say much more on all 
these topics; but I forbear. If, however, "chymist" 
mean only one who sells some matters prepared by the 
chymists, without knowing any thing of the science 
itself; a " druggist,' 1 the seller of those matters used by 
apothecaries, and prescribed by physicians to their pa- 
tients, without knowing a tittle of their hygeian proper- 
ties ; or, whether they are calculated in the case (prove 
ii-ata) to kill or to cure; the "grocer," the dealer in 
pounds or pennyworths of tea, sugar, spices, raisins, 
soap, starch, blue, &c, &c. ; and the " bookseller," 
merely a vender of Reading-made-Easys, geography, 
histories of England, and the snivellings and drivellings 
of the sentimental writers ; all these may be dealt in by 
the same person, and collected together in the same shop, 
if it be only large enough. I must confess I pay great 
deference to ancient adages, and among them I remem- 
ber, •' Jack of all trades, and master of none •" " He 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGT — PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 279 

who has too manv irons in the fire, — some of them must 
cool." 

A match of a man's own making, when guided by 
reason and religion, will necessarily be a happy one. 
When fathers and mothers make matches for their chil- 
dren, which are dictated by motives, not of affection, but 
merely of convenience, worldly gain, &c, &c, such 
matches are generally wretched ; it is Leah in the place 
of Rachel to the end of life's pilgrimage. 

If I be asked, " Should Christian parents lay up 
money for their children ?" I answer : it is the duty 
of every parent, who can, to lay up what is necessary to 
put every child in a condition to earn its bread. If he 
neglect this, he undoubtedly sins against God and nature. 
" But should not a man lay up, beside this, a fortune 
for his children, if he can honestly ?" I answer : Yes, 
if there be no poor within his reach ; no good work 
which he can assist ; no heathen region on the earth to 
which he can contribute to send the gospel of Jesus ; 
but not otherwise. God shows, in the course of his 
providence, that this laying up of fortunes for children 
is not right ; for there is scarcely ever a case, where 
money has been saved up to make the children indepen- 
dent and gentlemen, in which God has not cursed the 
blessing. It was saved from the poor, from the igno- 
rant, from the cause of God ; and the canker of his 
displeasure consumed this ill-saved property. 

Christ loves little children, because he loves simplicity 
and innocence ; he has sanctified their very age by pass- 
ing- through it himself. The holv Jesus was once "a little 
child. 

There is no evidence in the whole Book of God that 
any child dies eternally for Adam's sin. Nothing of 
this kind is intimated in the Bible ; and, as Jesus took 
upon him human nature, and condescended to be born 
of a woman in a state of perfect helpless infancy, he has, 
consequently, sanctified this state, and has said, without 
limitation or exception, " Suffer little children to come 
unto me, and forbid them not; for of such is the king- 
dom of God." We may justly infer, and all the justice 
as w r ell as the mercy of the Godhead supports the in- 
ference, that all human beings, dying in an infant state, 
are regenerated by that " grace of God which bringeth 



2S0 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PARENTS AND CHILDREN. 

salvation to all men," Titus ii, 11, and go infalliby to 
the kingdom of heaven. 

Who can account for the continual preservation and 
support of little children, while exposed to so many 
dangers, but on the ground of a peculiar and extraor- 
dinary providence ? 

Youth is the time, and the time alone, in which learn- 
ing can be attained. I find that I can now remember 
very little but what I learned when I was young. I 
have, it is true, acquired many things since, but it has 
been with great labour and difficulty ; and I find I can- 
not retain them as I can those things which I gained in 
my youth. Had I not got rudiments and principles in 
the beginning, I should certainly have made but little 
out in life. 

Hear, ye children : God has given us only ten com- 
mandments, essentially necessary to our happiness in 
our religious, civil, and domestic life; and one of the 
ten speaks of, and strongly recommends, obedience to 
parents. Nature and common sense teach us that there 
is a degree of affectionate respect which is owing to 
parents, and which no other persons can properly claim. 
For a considerable time, parents stand, in some sort, 
in the place of God to their children ; and, therefore, 
rebellion against their lawful commands has been con- 
sidered as rebellion against God. This precept, there- 
fore, prohibits, not only all injurious acts, irreverent and 
unkind speeches to parents, but enjoins all necessary 
acts of kindness, filial respect, and obedience. 

We can scarcely suppose that man honours his 
parents who, when they fall weak, blind, or sick, does 
not exert himself to the uttermost in their support. In 
such cases God as truly requires the children to provide 
for their parents, as he required the parents to feed, 
nourish, instruct, support, and defend the children, when 
they were in the lowest state of helpless infancy. 

All the reasonable commands of parents, children, 
while they are under their jurisdiction, should punctu- 
ally obey. And even in cases where parents have no 
right to command, (as in matters of religion, which refer 
only to God and the conscience, and in the choice of 
partners for life, in which the parties themselves are 
alone interested, because they are to dwell together for 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MASTERS AND SERVANTS. 281 

life,) their counsel and advice should be respectfully 
sought, as their age and experience often enable them 
to speak seasonably on such a subject. 

There is little room to doubt that the untimely deaths 
of many young persons were the judicial consequences 
of their disobedience to their parents. Most who come 
to an untimely end are obliged to confess that this, with 
the breach of the Sabbath, were the principal causes of 
their ruin. Reader, art thou guilty? Humble thyself, 
therefore, before God, and repent. 

The duty of children to their parents only ceases 
when the parents are laid in their graves, and this duty 
is the next in order and importance to the duty we owe 
to God. No circumstances can alter its nature or lessen 
its importance. " Honour thy father and thy mother," 
is the sovereign everlasting command of God. While 
the relations of parent and child exist, this command- 
ment will be in full force. 

Filial affection is one of the first duties man owes 
upon earth : only his duty to God is paramount. There 
cannot be a nearer representation of an empoverished 
Christ, to the eye of a child, than a parent in distress ; 
nor will the approbation of God be more strongly ex- 
pressed in the day of final retribution than to that child 
who has honoured the Lord with his substance, in sup- 
plying the wants of those from whom, under God, he 
has derived his being. And those who have ministered 
to the necessities of their parents will be found at the 
top of the list of those of whom the Fountain of justice 
and Father of mercies speaks when he says, " I was 
hungry, and ye gave me meat ; thirsty, and ye gave me 
drink; naked, and ye clothed me ; sick, and in prison, 
and re ministered unto rue." 



XXIL— MASTERS AND SERVANTS.* 

Justice and equity require that servants should have 
proper food, proper raiment, due rest, and no more than 

* As I have found very little on this subject in Dr. Clarke's 
writings, I shall perhaps be excused if I refer the reader to a small 
work recently published, the title of which is, " A Present for 
Female Servants : or, the Secret of their getting and keeping; good 
Places."— S. D. 



282 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MASTERS AND SERVANTS. 

moderate work. This is a lesson that all masters 
throughout the universe should carefully learn. Do not 
treat your servants as if God had made them of an 
inferior blood to yours. 

Mr. S. Wesley, jun., had not only the friendship of 
Lord Oxford, but his intimacy also ; and frequently 
dined at his house. But this was an honour for which 
he was obliged to pay a grievous tax, ill suited to the 
narrowness of his circumstances. Vales to servants, 
that sovereign disgrace to their masters, were in those 
days quite common, and, in some instances, seem to 
have stood in the place of wages. A whole range of 
liverymen generally stood in the lobby with eager 
expectation and rapacity when any gentleman came out 
from dining at a nobleman's table ; so that no person 
who was not affluent could afford to enjoy that privilege. 
One day on returning from his lordship's table, and 
seeing the usual range of greedy expectants, Mr. Wesley 
addressed them thus : " My friends, I must make an 
agreement with you suited to my purse ; and shall dis- 
tribute so much (naming the sum) once in the month, 
and no more." This becoming generally known, was 
not only the means of checking that troublesome impor- 
tunity, but also of redressing the evil; for their master, 
whose honour was concerned, commanded them to 
" stand back in their ranks when a gentleman retired ;" 
and prohibited their begging ! Many eminent men have 
endeavoured to bring this vile custom into deserved dis- 
grace ; Dryden, Addison, Swift, &c. ; but it still con- 
tinues, though under another form : leaving taverns out 
of the question, (where the lowest menial expects to be 
paid if he condescends to answer a civil question,) 
cooks, chambermaids, waiters, errand boys, &c, &c. : 
all expect money, if you lodge in their master's house 
but a single night ! And they expect to be paid, too, in 
proportion to the treatment you have received from their 
master, and in proportion to his credit and respecta- 
bility, and not to your means or purse. The gentry of 
the land should rise up as one man against this disgrace- 
ful custom, as the Board of Excise have done against 
the bribes taken by their officers. Let a servant, on 
being hired, hear, "Your wages for which you agree 
shall be duly and faithfully paid : I shall not require the 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — RULERS AND SUBJECTS. 283 

aid of my friends to make up the deficiencies of my ser- 
vants. The day on which I am informed that you 
receive any thing from my guests, you shall be dismissed 
from my service " If all agree to act thus, this griev- 
ous tax upon our friends will soon be abolished. There 
are few cases where the friendly visit does not cost him 
who pays it five times more than his maintenance w r ould 
have done at his own house. 

It is possible for an unfaithful servant to wrong and 
defraud his master in a great variety of ways without 
being detected ; but let all such remember what is here 
said : " He that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong 
which he has done :" God sees him and will punish him 
for his breach of honesty and trust. Wasting, or not 
taking proper care of the goods of your master, is such 
a wrong as God will resent. He that is unfaithful in 
that which is little, will be unfaithful in much, if he have 
opportunity ; and God alone is the defence against an 
unfaithful servant. 

A good servant never disputes, speaks little, and 
always follows his Avork. 

XXIIL— RULERS AND SUBJECTS.* 

The different forms of civil government which have 
obtained in the world : — 

I. Patriarchal. — Government by the heads of fa- 
milies. 

II. Theocracy. — The government of the Jews by 
God himself, as lawgiver, monarch, and judge. 

III. Monarchy. — Government exercised, laws made 
and executed, by the authority and will of an individual. 
Under this form may be classed, 1. Autocracy; a go- 
vernment in which an individual rules by himself without 
ministry, counsel, or advice. 2. Gynaeocracy. This is 
simply a case where the male issue fails, and the crown 
descends in the female line : but it has nothing in its 
civil constitution to distinguish it from monarchy, &c. 
3. Despotism. Formerly despot signified no more than 
N master or teacher." It is now used only in a bad 

* Dr. Clarke published two very instructive tracts, entitled, 
" The Rights of God and Csesar;' J and " The Origin and End of 
Civil Government." — S. D, 



284 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV RULERS AND SUBJECTS. 

sense, and frequently confounded with tyranny. 4. Ty- 
ranny. Originally the term tyranny appears to have 
meant no more than " monarchy ;" but the abuse, or 
lawless exercise of power, brought the words tyrant and 
despot to imply " a cruel and relentless governor; an 
unreasonable and oppressive ruler." 5. King signifies 
properly " the knowing person, the wise man." 

IV. Aristocracy. — Government by the nobles. Aris- 
tocracy generally prevails in a regency, where the 
hereditary governor is a minor, or under age. Under 
aristocracy may be ranked Oligarchy : a state in which 
a few men, whether of the nobles or plebeians, but par- 
ticularly the latter, have the supreme rule. This fre- 
quently prevails under revolutions, where the rightful 
governor is deposed or destroyed. 

V. Democracy. — A government administered by re- 
presentatives chosen by the people at large. Nearly 
allied to this is "republicanism." There is rather an 
affected than real difference between this and democracy: 
both are of the people, though the latter pretends to be 
of a more liberal type than the former. Federalism : 
A government framed out of several states, each having 
its. own representatives, and sending them to a general 
congress or diet. 

VI. Anarchy. — Where the legislative and executive 
power is acknowledged as existing nowhere, or rather 
equally in every individual : and where, consequently, 
there is no rule ; all is confusion, every one doing what 
is right in his own eyes. 

At present only three kinds of governments prevail 
in the world : — 1. Monarchy; 2. Aristocracy; 3. Demo- 
cracy : and these are only distinguished by being more 
or less limited by law, more or less rigid in execution, 
or more or less mild in general operation. 

Every man owes to Caesar, that is, the civil govern- 
ment under which he lives, 

I. Honour. He who respects not civil institutions, 
and those who in the course of God's providence are 
clothed with political authority, will scarcely regard 
civil obligations : and the men who can speak evil of 
such dignities will, in general, be found such as have 
little reverence for God himself. It is therefore most 
evident that every man should honour and reverence 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY RULERS AND SUBJECTS'. 285 

civil authority, in whomsoever it is invested : 1. Because 
it comes from God. 2. Because without it society could 
not subsist. 3. Because in every case it promotes, in a 
less or greater degree, the public welfare ; and, 4. Be- 
cause, in its support and preservation, his own happi- 
ness is intimately concerned. If Caesar, in his official 
character, do not receive that honour which, from the 
origin, nature, and end of government, is due to him, 
public order and tranquillity must soon be at an end. 

II. Obedience. There can be no government with- 
out laws : and laws, howsoever good in themselves, are 
useless if not obeyed. In the order of God, to Caesar is 
intrusted the civil sword ; and the laws show how he is 
to wield it. While it is " a terror to evil doers," it is a 
" praise to them that do well." Where the laws are 
right, and equal justice is maintained, no honest man 
need fear the sword. Obedience to the laws is abso- 
lutely necessary : for, when the spirit of insubordina- 
tion takes place, no man can ever have his right ; 
nothing but wrong prevails ; and the property of the 
honest and industrious man will soon be found in the 
hands of the knave. Those who have nothing to lose, 
and to whom the state owes nothing, are the first to cry 
out of wrongs ; and the first to disturb civil order, that 
they may enrich themselves with the spoils of those who 
by legal inheritance, or honest industry, have obtained 
wealth. Wherever the spirit of disobedience and insub- 
ordination appears, it should be discountenanced and 
opposed by every honest man. 

III. Tribute. Nothing can be more reasonable than 
the principle of taxation. Every country must have a 
government. Every government has three grand duties 
to perform in behalf of the governed: 1. to maintain 
domestic order. 2. To distribute impartial justice. 3. 
To protect from foreign enemies. For the first, many 
civil officers, and a militia, are generally required. For 
the second, courts of justice, judges, &c, must be pro- 
vided. For the third, a strong military and naval force, 
particularly in times of war, or danger, must be always 
on foot, or in readiness, in order to save the state. 

Now, all these expenses are incurred for the public ; 
and by the public they ought to be borne : and taxation 
is the only mode by which money can be raised to 



286 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY RULERS AND SUBJECTS. 

defray these expenses. Every man, therefore, who 
shares in the blessings of domestic peace ; who glories 
in the administration of impartial justice ; and who 
Avishes the land of his nativity, the constitution of his 
country, and its civil and religious institutions, to be 
preserved to himself and his dependants; should cheer- 
fully bear his part of the public burdens, by giving that 
tribute to Caesar, through whom and from whom, accord- 
ing to the constitution, under the superintendence of 
God's providence, all these inestimable blessings are 
derived. He should support the government, that the 
government may support him : and the principle of jus- 
tice is the same here as in the performance of any civil 
contract, or the remuneration of any kind of service. 
The justice that obliges me to pay the hireling his 
wages equally obliges me to pay tribute to Caesar. I 
have had the hireling's labour ; he has had my pay. I 
have had the protection of the state ; it has had my re- 
spect, obedience, and support. In both cases obligation 
and interest are mutual. The state is bound to protect 
the subject ; the subject is bound to obey and support 
the state. When the subject is protected in all his 
rights and privileges, the state has done its duty. When 
the subject honours the state, obeys the laws, and con- 
tributes his quota for the support of government, he has 
done his duty. The subject cannot live without the 
support of the state; the state cannot exist without the 
obedience and support of the subject. 

Reader, if thou hast the happiness to live under the 
British constitution, be thankful to God, Here, the 
will, the power, and utmost influence of the king, were 
he even so disposed, cannot deprive the meanest subject 
of his property, his liberty, or his life. All the solemn 
legal forms of justice must be consulted; the culprit, 
however accused, be heard by himself and his counsel ; 
and in the end twelve honest, impartial men, chosen 
from among his fellows, shall decide on the validity of 
the evidence produced by the accuser. For the trial 
by jury may God make the inhabitants of Great Britain 
thankful ! 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — RICH AND POOR. 287 



XXIV.— RICH AND POOR. 

Happiness must have its seat in the mind, and, like 
that, be of a spiritual nature ; consequently earthly goods 
cannot give it : so far are they from either producing or 
procuring it, that they always engender care and anxiety, 
and often strifes and contentions. 

Affluence is a slippery path : few have ever walked 
in it without falling. It is possible to be faithful in the 
unrighteous mammon : but it is very difficult. No man 
should desire riches ; for they bring with them so many 
snares and temptations as to be almost unmanageable. 
Rich men, even when pious, are seldom happy : they do 
not enjoy the consolations of religion. A good man, 
possessed of very extensive estates, unblamable in his 
whole deportment, once said to me, " There must be 
some strange malignity in riches, thus to keep ~me in 
continual bondage, and deprive me of the consolations 
of the gospel." Perhaps to a person, to whom his 
estates are a snare, the words of our Lord may be 
literally applicable : " Sell what thou hast, and give to 
the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven ; and 
come, take up thy cross, and follow me." But " he 
went away sorrowful ; for he had great possessions !" 

To be rich is in general a great misfortune : but 
what rich man can be convinced of this 1 It is only God 
himself who, by a miracle of mercy, can do this. 

A godly man must save both time and money. Be- 
fore he was converted he lost much time, and squandered 
his money. All this he now saves, and therefore wealth 
and riches must be in his house : and if he do not 
distribute to the necessities of the poor, they will con- 
tinue to accumulate till they be his curse ; or God will, 
by his providence, sweep them away. 

What art thou, O rich man ? Why, thou art a stew- 
ard to whom God has given substance, that thoumayest 
divide with the poor. They are the right owners of 
every farthing thou hast to spare from thy own support 
and that of thy family ; and God has given thee surplus 
for their sakes. Dost thou, by hoarding up this treasure, 
deprive the right owners of their property? If this 
were a civil case, the law would take thee by the throat, 



288 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — RICH AND POOR. 

and lay thee up in prison : but it is a case in which 
God alone judges. And what will he do to thee ? Hear ! 
" He shall have judgment without mercy who hath 
showed no mercy." Read, feel, tremble, and act justly. 

In the order of God the rich and the poor live to- 
gether, and are mutually helpful to each other. Without 
the poor, the rich could not be supplied with the articles 
they consume ; for the poor include all the labouring 
classes of society : and without the rich the poor could 
get no vent for the produce of their labour ; nor, in 
many cases, labour itself. The poor have more time to 
labour than the mere necessaries of life require ; their 
extra time is employed in providing a multitude of things 
which are called the superfluities of life, and which the 
rich especially consume. All the poor man's time is 
thus employed ; and he is paid for his extra labour by 
the rich. The rich should not despise the poor, without 
whom he can neither have his comforts, nor maintain 
his state. The poor should not envy the rich, without 
whom he could neither get employment nor the neces- 
saries of life. Both the states are in the order of God's 
providence ; and both are equally important in his sight. 
Merely considered as men, God loves the simple artificer, 
or labourer, as much as he does the king ; though the 
office of the latter, because of its entering into the plan 
of his government of the world, is of infinitely greater 
consequence than the trade of the poor artificer. Neither 
should despise the other ; neither should envy the other. 
Both are useful; both important; both absolutely ne- 
cessary to each other's welfare and support ; and both 
are accountable to God for the manner in which they 
acquit themselves in those duties of life which God has 
respectively assigned them. The abject poor, those who 
are destitute of health and the means of life, God in 
effect lays at the rich man's door, that by his superflu- 
ities they may be supported. How wise is that ordi- 
nance w r hich has made the rich and the poor ! Pity it 
were not better understood ! Great possessions are 
generally accompanied with pride, idleness, and luxury , 
and these are the greatest enemies to salvation. 

What opinion should we form of a rich man who, m 
a collection for a public charity, only threw in a handful 
of halfpence ? 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — RICH AND POOR. 289 

What blindness is it for a man to lay up that as a 
treasure which must necessarily perish ! A heart de- 
signed for God and eternity is terribly degraded by being 
fixed on those things which are subject to corruption. 
" But may we not lay up treasure innocently ?" Yes, 1. 
If you can do it without setting your heart on it, which 
is almost impossible : and, 2. If there be neither widows 
nor orphans, destitute nor distressed persons, in the place 
where you live. 

In every man professing Christianity, the religion of 
Jesus Christ says most authoritatively, " With every 
man who is pinched by poverty, share what the provi- 
dence of God has not made absolutely necessary for thy 
own support." 

A rich man is a man who gets all he can, saves all he 
can, and keeps all he has gotten. Speak, reason ! Speak, 
conscience! (for God has already spoken,) Can such a 
person enter into the kingdom of God ? All, No ! 

A man of the world cannot be a truly religious cha« 
racter. He who gives his heart to the world robs God 
of it ; and, in snatching at the shadow of earthly good, 
loses substantial and eternal blessedness. 

The affluently rich, full of sensuality, and pampered 
with the good things of this life, are only occupied with 
what they shall eat, what they shall drink, how they 
shall amuse and sport themselves, and wherewithal they 
shall be clothed according to the endless changes in 
fantastic flippery fashions ; are too busy or too brutally 
happy to attend to the call of the gospel ; and because 
it would break in upon their gratifications, they hate 
religion, despise a crucified Saviour and the men who 
proclaim salvation through his name alone. 

Who, whatsoever his authority might be, or his 
qualifications, has been able to make many favourable 
impressions on the souls of mighty, and particularly 
rich and opulent men, so as to stem the torrent of 
fashionable impiety, and to establish among them the 
" form," or, if already established, imbue it with the 
" power of godliness V 

Neither good nor evil can be known by the occur- 
rences of this life. Every thing argues the certainty of 
a future state, and the necessity of a day of judgment. 
They who are in the habit of marking casualties (espe- 

13 



290 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY RICH AND POOR. 

cially if those whom they love not be the subjects of 
them) as tokens of divine displeasure, only show an 
ignorance of God's dispensations, and a malevolence of 
mind, that would fain arm itself with the celestial thun- 
ders, in order to transfix those whom they deem their 
enemies. 

" Blessed are the poor !" This is God's word : but 
who believes it ? Do we not say, " Yea, rather, blessed 
is the rich V 

A man may be grievously afflicted, and yet have his 
eye bent on temporal good ; from his afflictions he can 
derive no benefit, though many think that their glori- 
fication must be a necessary consequence of their afflic- 
tions ; and hence we do not unfrequently hear among 
the afflicted poor, " Well, we shall not suffer both here 
and in the other world too ! Afflictions may be the 
means of preparing us for glory, if during them we 
receive grace to save the soul." But afflictions of them- 
selves have no spiritual nor saving tendency ; on the 
contrary, they sour the unregenerated mind, and cause 
murmurings against the dispensations of divine provi- 
dence. Let us, therefore, look to God, that they may 
be sanctified ; and when they are, then we may say 
exultingly, " These light afflictions, which are but for a 
moment, work for us a far more exceeding and eternal 
weight of glory." O world to come, in exchange for 
the present ! O eternity, for a moment ! O eternal 
communion in the holy, blessed, and eternal life of God, 
for the sacrifice of a poor, miserable, and corrupted life 
here on earth ! 

I have had occasion to remark in many thousands of 
cases, during the observations of a long life, made in 
various parts, that true religion makes as little way 
among the miserably poor as among the affluently rich. 
The former, full of unbelief, baseness of mind, and 
pining bitterness, neither pray to God, nor care to hear 
about the provision he has made for their salvation. 
Who has ever been able to spread religion with much 
success among the occupants of a parish workhouse? 

And now, ye poor : arise and shake yourselves from 
the dust, and cry unto the Lord. Has not your present 
wretchedness proceeded either from your slothfulness, 
or the abuse of mercies already received ? God may 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV — RICH AND POOR. 291 

bring back your captivity : search your hearts, humble 
yourselves before him ; who knows but he will return, 
to you with mercies, and your expectation shall not 
perish for ever ? 

Be prudent ; be cautious ; neither eat, drink, nor 
wear, but as you pay for every thing. Live not on 
trust, for that is the way to pay double ; and by this 
means the poor are still kept poor. He who takes 
credit, even for food or raiment, when he has no proba- 
ble means of defraying the debt, is a dishonest man. It 
is no sin to die through lack of the necessaries of life 
when the providence of God has denied the means of 
support ; but it is a sin to take up goods without the 
probability of being able to pay for them. Poor man ! 
suffer poverty a little ; perhaps God is only trying thee 
for a time ; and who can tell if he will not turn again 
thy captivity. Labour hard to live honestly ; if God 
still appear to withhold his providential blessing, do not 
despair ; leave it all to him ; do not make a sinful 
choice \ he cannot err. He will bless thy poverty, 
while he curses the ungodly man's blessings. 

The most indigent may exercise the works of mercy 
and of charity ; seeing even a " cup of cold water," given 
in the name of Jesus, shall not lose its reward. How 
astonishing is God's kindness ! It is not the rich merely 
whom he calls on to be charitable ; but even the poor, 
and the most impoverished of the poor ! 

We can scarcely ever speak of poverty and affliction 
in an absolute sense ; they are only comparative. Even 
the poor are called to relieve those who are poorer than 
themselves ; and the afflicted, to comfort those who are 
more afflicted than they are. The poor and afflicted 
churches of Macedonia felt this duty, and therefore 
came forward to the uttermost of their power to relieve 
their more empoverished and afflicted brethren in Judea. 

" I have been young, and now am old ; yet have I 
not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging 
bread." I believe this to be literally true in all cases. 
I am now grey-headed myself, I have travelled in dif- 
ferent countries, and have had many opportunities of 
seeing and conversing with religious people in all situ- 
ations of life ; and I have not, to my knowledge, seen 
one instance to the contrary. I have seen no righteous 



292 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

man forsaken, nor any children of the righteous beg- 
ging their bread. God puts this honour upon all that 
fear him ; and thus careful is he of them and of their 
posterity. 

XXV.— MINISTERS AND PEOPLE.* 

Your call is not to instruct men in the doctrines and 
duties of Christianity merely, but to convert them from 
sin to holiness. A doctrine can be of little value that 
does not lead to practical effect ; and the duties of 
Christianity will be preached in vain to all who have 
not the principle of obedience. 

It is the prerogative of God both to call and qualify 
a man to be a successful preacher of his word. All 
men are not thus called ; among the millions professing 
Christianity very few are employed in the work of the 
ministry in the ordinary course of providence ; and still 
fewer by especial call. Every revival of religion is the 
proof of the dispensation of an extraordinary influence ; 
for in such outpourings of God's Spirit we ever tind 
extraordinary means and instruments used. 

You are either among these ordinary or extraordi- 
nary messengers ; and you have either an ordinary or 
extraordinary call. But as you belong not, as a Chris- 
tian minister, to any established form of religion in the 
land, you are an extraordinary messenger, or no minis- 
ter at all ; and you have either an extraordinary call, or 
you have no call whatever. 

I hold this to be a matter of prime importance ; for 
long experience has shown me that he among us who 
is not convinced that he has an extraordinary call to the 
ministry will never seek for extraordinary help, will 
sink under discouragements and persecutions, and con- 
sequently, far from being a light of the world, will be 
salt without savour ; and, in our connection, a slothful, 
if not a wicked servant, who should be cast out of the 
sacred fold, as an encumberer of the inheritance of the 
Lord. 

* Few selections have been made from the doctor's " Letter to 
a Preacher." It is presumed that those who feel an interest in the 
contents of this chapter will purchase that interesting pamphlet. 
It deserves the attention of all ministers of the gospel, and to 
Methodist preachers is invaluable. — S. D. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 293 

It is the prerogative of God to call and ordain his own 
ministers : it may be the prerogative of the church to 
appoint them where to labour ; though, frequently, this 
also comes by an especial divine appointment. 

To be properly qualified for a minister of Christ, a 
man must be — 1. Filled with the Spirit of holiness ; 
2. Called to his particular work ; 3. Instructed in its 
nature, &c. ; and, 4. Commissioned to go forth, and 
testify the gospel of the grace of God. These are four 
different gifts which a man must receive from God by 
Christ Jesus. To these let him add all the human 
qualifications he can possibly attain ; as in his arduous 
work he will require every gift and every grace. 

Jesus Christ never made an apostle of any man who 
was not first his scholar or disciple. 

He who has nothing but a net, and leaves that for the 
sake of doing good to the souls of men, leaves his all. 

Those who are really called of God to the sacred 
ministry are such as have been brought to a deep ac- 
quaintance with themselves, feel their own ignorance, 
and know their own weakness. They know also the 
awful responsibility that attaches to the work ; and 
nothing but the authority of God can induce such to 
undertake it. They whom God never called run be- 
cause of worldly honour and emolument ; the others 
hear the call with fear and trembling, and can go only 
in the strength of Jehovah. 

" How ready is the man to go, 
Whom God hath never sent ! 
How tim'rous, diffident, and slow 
God's chosen instrument !" 

None should be appointed to ecclesiastical offices who 
is not able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and con- 
vince the gainsayers. The powers necessary for this 
are partly natural, partly gracious, and partly acquired. 
1. If a man have not good natural abilities, nothing but 
a miracle from heaven can make him a proper preacher 
of the gospel ; and to make a man a Christian minister 
who is unqualified for any function of civil life, is sacri- 
lege before God. 2. If the grace of God do not com- 
municate ministerial qualifications, no natural gifts, 
however splendid, can be of any avail. To be a suc- 
cessful Christian minister, a man must feel the worth of 



294 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

immortal souls in such a way as God only can show it, 
in order to spend and be spent in the work. He who 
has never passed through the travail of the soul in the 
work of regeneration in his own heart can never make 
plain the way of salvation to others. 3. He who is 
employed in the Christian ministry should cultivate his 
mind in the most diligent manner ; he can neither learn 
nor know too much. If called of God to be a preacher, 
(and without such a call he had better be a galley slave,) 
he will be able to bring all his knowledge to the assist- 
ance and success of his ministry. If he have human 
learning, so much the better ; and if he be accredited, 
and appointed by those who have authority in the church, 
it will be to his advantage ; but no human learning, 
no ecclesiastical appointment, no mode of ordination, 
whether Popish, Episcopal, Protestant, or Presbyterian, 
can ever supply the divine unction, without which he 
never can convert and build up the souls of men. The 
piety of the flock must be faint and languishing when 
it is not animated by the heavenly zeal of the pastor ; 
they must be blind if he be not enlightened ; and their 
faith must be wavering when he can neither encourage 
nor defend it. 

O ye rulers of the church ! be careful, as ye shall 
answer it to God, never to lay hands on the head of a 
man whom ye have not just reason to believe God has 
called to the work ; and whose eye is single, and whose 
heart is pure. Let none be sent to teach Christianity 
who have not experienced it to be the power of God to 
the salvation of their own souls. If ye do, though they 
have your authority, they never can have the blessing 
or the approbation of God. " I sent them not : there- 
fore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the 
Lord." 

In consequence of the appointment of improper per- 
sons to the Christian ministry, there has been not only 
a decay of piety but also a corruption of religion. No 
man is a true Christian minister who has not grace, 
gifts, and fruit. If he have the grace of God, it will 
appear in his holy life and godly conversation. If to 
this he add genuine abilities he will give full proof of 
his ministry : and if he give full proof of his ministry 
he will have fruit ; the souls of sinners will be converted 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 295 

to God through his preaching, and believers will be 
built up on their most holy faith. How contemptible 
must that man appear in the eyes of common sense who 
boasts of his clerical education, his sacerdotal order, his 
legitimate authority to preach, administer the Christian 
sacraments, &<c, while no soul is benefited by his 
ministry! Such a person may have legal authority to 
take tithes, but as to an appointment from God, he has 
none ; else his word would be with power, and his 
preaching the means of salvation to his perishing 
hearers. 

What should ministers of the gospel feel on such 
subjects ? Is not their charge more important and 
more awful than that of Moses ? How few consider 
this ! It is respectable, it is honourable, to be in the 
gospel ministry ; but who is sufficient to guide and feed 
the flock of God 1 If through the pastor's unfitness or 
neglect any soul should go astray, or perish through 
want of proper spiritual nourishment, or through not 
getting his portion in due season, in what a dreadful 
state is the pastor ! That soul, says God, shall die in 
his iniquities, but his blood will I require at the watch- 
man's hands ! Were these things duly considered by 
those who are candidates for the gospel ministry, who 
could be found to undertake it ? We should then indeed 
have the utmost occasion to pray the Lord of the har- 
vest to thrust out labourers into the harvest ; as no 
one, duly considering those things, would go, unless 
thrust out by God himself. O ye ministers of the sanc- 
tuary ! tremble for your own souls, and the souls of 
those committed to your care, and go not into this work 
unless God go with you. Without his presence, unc- 
tion, and approbation ye can do nothing. 

Who is capable of these things ? Is it such a person 
as has not intellect sufficient for a common trade or 
calling % No ; a preacher of the gospel should be a man 
of the soundest sense, the most cultivated mind, the 
most extensive experience, one who is deeply taught of 
God, and who has deeply studied man ; one who has 
prayed much, read much, and studied much ; one who 
takes up his work as from God, does it as before God, 
and refers all to the glory of God ; one who abides un- 
der the inspiration of the Almighty, and who has hidden 



296 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

the word of God in his heart, that he might not sin 
against him. No minister formed by man can ever be 
such as is required here. The school of Christ, and 
that alone, can ever form such a preacher. 

The ministers of the gospel are signets or seals of 
Jesus Christ ; he uses them to stamp his truth, to 
accredit it, and give it currency. But as a seal can 
mark nothing of itself unless applied by a proper hand, 
so the ministers of Christ can do no good, seal no truth, 
impress no soul, unless the great Owner condescend to 
use them. 

A wicked man can neither have nor communicate 
authority to dispense heavenly mysteries ; and a fool, 
or a blockhead, can never teach others the way of sal- 
vation. The highest abilities are not too great for a 
preacher of the gospel ; nor is it possible that he can 
have too much human learning. But all is nothing un- 
less he can bring the grace and Spirit of God into all 
his ministrations ; and these will never accompany hjm 
unless he live in the spirit of prayer and humility, fear- 
ing and loving God, and hating covetousness. 

The word of him who has this commission from 
heaven shall be as a fire and as a hammer ; sinners 
shall be convinced and converted to God by it. But 
the others, though they steal the word from their neigh- 
bour, borrow or pilfer a good sermon ; yet they do not 
profit the people at all, because God did not send them ; 
for the power of God does not in their ministry accom- 
pany the word. 

For my own part, I should ever feel disposed to bow 
with respect to that rare dispensation of providence 
and grace which should, in similar circumstances, with 
as clear and distinct a call, raise up a woman of such 
talents and piety to labour in the gospel, where the 
people were perishing for lack of knowledge, and so 
snatch the brands from eternal burning. Who so pre- 
judiced as not to see that God put no honour on Inman, 
the curate, but chose Susanna Wesley to do the work 
of the evangelist? The abundance of gracious fruit 
which sprang from this seed proved that the master 
sower was Jesus, the Lord of the harvest. Lord, thou 
wilt send by whomsoever thou pleasest ; and wilt hide 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 297 

pride from man, in order to prove that the excellence 
of the power is of thee ! 

When the great Head of the church calls a man to 
preach the gospel, he in effect says, " Go into all the 
world, and preach the gospel to every creature." He 
never confines his own gift and call absolutely to any 
place ; but leaves the in under the direction and ma- 
nagement of his own providence. The call of God to 
preach is a missionary call ; and they who have it know 
that they are not their own, and must do the Master's 
work in the Master's own way, place, and time. Hence 
all the ministers of his gospel have a missionary spirit ; 
let providence direct, as it chooses, their way. 

Does any man inquire what is the duty of a gospel 
minister? Send him to the second chapter of the Epistle 
to Titus for a complete answer. There he will find 
what he is to believe, what he is to practise, and what 
he is to preach. Even his congregation is parcelled out 
to him. The old and the young of both sexes, and 
those who are in their employment, are considered to be 
the objects of his ministry; and a plan of teaching, in 
reference to those different descriptions of society, is 
laid down before him. He finds here the doctrine which 
he is to preach to them, the duties which he is required 
to inculcate, the motives by which his exhortations are 
to be strengthened, and the end which both he and his 
people should invariably have in view. 

The charge of St. Paul to the pastors of the church 
of Christ at Ephesus and Miletus contains much that is 
interesting to every Christian minister : — 1. If he be sent 
of God at all, he is sent to feed the flock. 2. But, in order 
to feed them, he must have the bread of life. 3. This 
bread he must distribute in its due season, that each may 
have that portion that is suitable to time, place, and 
state. 4. While he is feeding others, he should take 
care to have his own soul fed : it is possible for a minis- . 
ter to be the instrument of feeding others, and yet starve 
himself. 5. If Jesus Christ intrust to his care the souls 
he has bought by his own blood, what an awful account 
will he have to give in the day of judgment, if any of 
them perish through his neglect ! Though the sinner, 
dying in his sins, has his own blood upon his head, yet, 
if the watchman has not faithfully warned him, his blood 

13* 



298 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

will be required at the watchman's hand. Let him who 
is concerned read Ezekiel xxxiii, 3-5, and think of the 
account which he is shortly to give unto God. 

The very discoveries which are really useful have 
been made by men who feared God, and conscientiously 
credited divine revelation ; witness Newton, Boyle, 
Pascal, and many others. But all the skeptics and deists, 
by their schemes of natural religion and morality, have 
not been able to save one soul ! No sinner has ever 
been converted from the error of his ways by their 
preaching or writings. 

In all this enumeration, where the apostle gives us all 
the officers and gifts necessary for the constitution of a 
church, we find not one word of bishops, presbyters, or 
deacons ; much less of the various officers and offices 
which the Christian church at present exhibits. Per- 
haps the bishops are included under the apostles, the 
presbyters under the prophets, and the deacons under 
the teachers. As to the other ecclesiastical officers with 
which the Romish Church teems, they may seek them 
who are determined to find them, anywhere out of the 
New Testament. 

It is natural for men to run into extremes ; and there 
is no subject on which they have run into wider extremes 
than that of the necessity of human learning ; for, in 
order to a proper understanding of the sacred Scrip- 
tures, on one hand, all learning has been cried down, 
and the necessity of the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, 
as the sole interpreter, strongly and vehemently argued. 
On the other, all inspiration has been set aside, the pos- 
sibility of it questioned, and all pretensions to it ridiculed 
in a way savouiing little of Christian charity or reve- 
rence for God. That there is a middle way from which 
these extremes are equally distant, every candid man 
who believes the Bible must allow. That there is an 
inspiration of the Spirit which every conscientious 
Christian may claim, and without which no man can be 
a Christian, is sufficiently established by innumerable 
scriptures, and by the uninterrupted and universal testi- 
mony of the church of God ; this has been frequently 
proved in the preceding notes. If any one, professing 
to be a preacher of the gospel of Jesus, denies, speaks, 
or writes against this, he only gives awful proof to the 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 299 

Christian church how utterly unqualified he is for his 
sacred function. He is not sent by God, and therefore 
he shall not profit the people at all. With such, human 
learning is all in all ; it is to be a substitute for the unc- 
tion of Christ, and the grace and influences of the Holy 
Spirit. 

But while we flee from such sentiments as from 
the influence of a pestilential vapour, shall we join 
with those who decry learning and science, absolutely 
denying them to be of any service in the work of the 
ministry, and often going so far as to assert that they 
are dangerous, and subversive of the truly Christian tem- 
per and spirit, engendering little beside pride, self-suffi- 
ciency, and intolerance ? 

That there have been pretenders to learning, proud 
and intolerant, we have too many proofs of the fact to 
doubt it ; and that there have been pretenders to divine 
inspiration, not less so, we have also many facts to prove. 
But such are only pretenders ; for a truly learned man 
is ever humble and complacent ; and one who is under 
the influence of the divine Spirit is ever meek, gentle, 
and easy to be entreated. The proud and the insolent 
are neither Christians nor scholars. Both religion and 
learning disclaim them, as being a disgrace to both. 

But it is not the ability merely to interpret a few 
Greek and Latin authors that can constitute a man a 
scholar, or qualify him to teach the gospel. Thousands 
have this knowledge who are neither wise unto salvation 
themselves, nor capable of leading those who are astray 
into the path of life. Learning is a word of extensive 
import ; it signifies knowledge and experience ; the 
knowledge of God and of nature in general, and of man 
in particular ; of man in all his relations and connec- 
tions ; his history in all the periods of his being, and in 
all the places of his existence; the means used by divine 
Providence for his support ; the manner in which he has 
been led to employ the power and faculties assigned to 
him by his Maker ; and the various dispensations of 
grace and mercy by which, he has been favoured. To 
acquire this knowledge, an acquaintance with some lan- 
guages, which have long ceased to be vernacular, is 
often not only highly expedient, but in some cases 
indispensably necessary. But how few of those who 



300 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

pretend most to learning, and who have spent both much 
time and much money in seats of literature in order to 
obtain it, have got this knowledge ! All that many of 
them have gained is merely the means of acquiring it; 
with this they become satisfied, and most ignorantly call 
it learning. These resemble persons who carry large 
unlighted tapers in their hand, and boast how well qua- 
lified they are to give light to them who sit in darkness ; 
while they neither emit light nor heat, and are incapable 
of kindling the taper they hold. Learning, in one 
proper sense of the word, is the means of acquiring 
knowledge ; but multitudes who have the means seem 
utterly unacquainted with their use, and live and die in 
a learned ignorance. Human learning, properly applied 
and sanctified by the divine Spirit, is of inconceivable 
benefit to a Christian minister in teaching and defend- 
ing the truth of God. No man possessed more of it in 
his day than St. Paul. And no man better knew its 
use. In this, as well as in many other excellences, he 
is a most worthy pattern to all the preachers of the gos- 
pel. By learning a man may acquire knowledge ; by 
knowledge, reduced to practice, experience ; and from 
knowledge and experience wisdom is derived. The 
learning that is got from books, or the study of languages, 
is of little use to any man, and is of no estimation, unless 
practically applied to the purposes of life. He whose 
learning and knowledge have enabled him to do good 
among men, and who lives to promote the glory of God 
and the welfare of his fellow creatures, can alone, of all 
the literati, expect to hear in the great day, " Well done, 
good and faithful servant ! Enter thou into the joy of 
thy Lord." 

How necessary learning is at present to interpret the 
sacred writings, any man may see who reads with atten- 
tion ; but none can be so fully convinced of this as he 
who undertakes to write a comment on the Bible. 
Those who despise helps of this kind are to be pitied. 
Without them, they may, it is true, understand enough 
for the mere salvation of their souls; and yet even 
much of this they owe, under God, to the teaching of 
experienced men. After all, it is not a knowledge of 
Latin and Greek merely that can enable a man to under- 
stand the Scriptures, or interpret them to others ; if ''the 






CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 301 

Spirit of God take not away the veil of ignorance from 
the heart, and enlighten and quicken the soul with his 
all-pervading energy, all the learning under heaven will 
not make a man wise unto salvation. 

Paul was not brought into the Christian ministry by 
any rite ever used in the Christian church. Neither 
bishop nor presbyter ever laid hands on him ; and he is 
more anxious to prove this, because his chief honour 
arose from being sent immediately by God himself: his 
conversion and the purity of his doctrine showed whence 
he came. Many since his time, and in the present day, 
are far more anxious to show that they are legitimately 
appointed by man than by God ; and are fond of dis- 
playing their human credentials. These are easily 
shown ; those that come from God are out of their 
reach. How idle and how vain is a boasted succession 
from the apostles, while ignorance, intolerance, pride, 
and vain glory prove that those very persons have no 
commission from Heaven ! Endless cases may occur 
where man sends, and yet God will not sanction. And 
that man has no right to preach, nor administer the 
sacraments of the church of Christ, whom God has not 
sent, though the whole assembly of apostles had laid 
their hands on him. God never sent, and never will 
send, to convert others, a man who is not converted 
himself. He will never send him to teach meekness, 
gentleness, and long suffering, who is proud, overbear- 
ing, intolerant, and impatient. He, in whom the Spirit 
of Christ does not dwell, never had a commission to 
preach the gospel ; he may boast of his human autho- 
rity, but God will laugh him to scorn. On the other 
hand, let none run before he is sent ; and when he has 
got the authority of God, let him be careful to take that 
of the church with him also. 

By the kind providence of God, it appears that he 
has not permitted any apostolic succession to be pre- 
served ; lest the members of his church should seek that 
in uninterrupted succession which must be found in the 
Head alone. The Papists or Roman Catholics, who 
boast of an uninterrupted succession, which is a mere 
fable, that never was and never can be proved, have 
raised up another head, the pope. And I appeal to 
themselves, in the fear of God, whether they do not in 



302 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

heart and in speech trace up all their authority to him ; 
and only compliment Christ as having appointed Peter 
to be the first bishop of Rome ; (which is an utter fal- 
sity, for he was never appointed to such an office there, 
nor ever held such an office in that city ; nor, in their 
sense, anywhere else ;) and they hold also that the 
popes of Rome are not so much Peter's successors, as 
God's vicars ; and thus both God and Peter are nearly 
lost sight of in their papal enumerations. With them 
the authority of the church is all in all; the authority 
of Christ is seldom mentioned. 

It is idle to employ time in proving that there is no 
such thing as an uninterrupted succession of this kind; 
it does not exist, it never did exist. It is a silly fable, 
invented by ecclesiastical tyrants, and supported by 
clerical coxcombs. But were it even true, it has nothing 
to do with the text, Heb. v, 4. It speaks merely of the 
appointment of a high priest, the succession to be pre- 
served in the tribe of Levi, and in the family of Aaron. 
But even this succession was interrupted and broken, 
and the office itself was to cease on the coming of 
Christ, after whom there could be no high priest; nor 
can Christ have any successor, and therefore he is said 
to be a "priest for ever," for he ever liveth the inter- 
cessor and sacrifice for mankind. The verse, therefore, 
has nothing to do with the clerical office, with preach- 
ing God's holy word, or administering the sacraments; 
and those who quote it in this way show how little they 
understand the Scriptures, and how ignorant ^they are 
of the nature of their own office. 

If Christ be a priest for ever, there can be no succes- 
sion of priests ; and if he have all power in heaven and 
in earth, and if he be present wherever two or three are 
gathered together in his name, he can have no vicars ; 
nor can the church need one to act in his place, when 
he, from the necessity of his nature, fills all places and 
is everywhere present. This one consideration nulli- 
fies all the pretensions of the Romish pontiff, and proves 
the whole to be a tissue of imposture. 

A man may be well taught in the things of God. and 
be able to teach others, who has not had the advantages 
of a liberal education. 

Teachers who preach for hire, having no motive to 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 303 

enter into the ministry but to get a living, as it is called 
ominously by some ; however they may bear the garb 
and appearance of the innocent useful sheep, the true 
pastors commissioned by the Lord Jesus, or to whatever 
name, class, or party they may belong, are, in the sight 
of the heart-searching God, no other than ravenous 
wolves, whose design is to feed themselves with the fat, 
and clothe themselves with the fleece, and thus ruin, 
instead of save the flock. 

He who preaches to get a living, or to make a fortune, 
is guilty of the most infamous sacrilege. 

Even in our enlightened country, we find prophets 
who prefer hunting the hare or the fox, and pursu- 
ing the partridge and pheasant, to visiting the sick, and 
going after the strayed, lost sheep of the house of Israel. 
Poor souls ! they know neither God nor themselves ; 
and if they did visit the sick, they could not speak to 
them to exhortation, edification, or comfort. God 
never called them to his work, therefore they know 
nothing of it. But O what an account have these plea- 
sure-taking false prophets to render to the Shepherd 
of souls ! 

" His blood will I require at thy hand :" — I will visit 
thy soul for the loss of his. O how awful is this ! Hear 
it, ye priests, — ye preachers, — ye ministers of the gos- 
pel ; ye, especially, who have entered into the ministry 
for a living: ye who gather a congregation to your- 
selves that ye may feed upon their fat, and clothe your- 
selves with their wool ; in whose parishes and in whose 
congregations souls are dying unconverted from day to 
day, who have never been solemnly warned by you, and 
to whom you have never shown the way of salvation, — 
probably because ye know nothing of it yourselves. O, 
what a perdition awaits you ! To have the blood of 
every soul that has died in your parishes or in your con- 
gregations unconverted, laid at your door ! To suffer a 
common damnation for every soul that perishes through 
your neglect ! How many loads of endless wo must 
such have to bear ! Ye take your tithes, your stipends, 
or your rents, to the last grain, and the last penny ; 
while the souls over whom you made yourselves watch- 
men have perished, and are perishing through youi 
neglect ! O worthless and hapless men ! better for you 



304 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

had ye never been born ! Vain is your boast of apos- 
tolical authority, while ye do not the work of apostles. 
Vain your boast of your orthodoxy, while ye neither 
show nor know the way of salvation ; — vain your pre- 
tensions to a divine call, when ye do not the work of 
evangelists. The state of the most wretched of the 
human race is enviable to that of such ministers, pastors, 
teachers, and preachers. 

We did not seek temporal emolument ; nor did we 
preach the gospel for a cloak to our covetousness : God 
is witness that we did not ; we sought you, not yours. 
Hear this, ye that preach the gospel ! Can ye call God 
to witness that in preaching it ye have no end in view 
by your ministry but his glory in the salvation of souls ? 
Or do ye enter into the priesthood for a morsel of bread, 
or for what is ominously and impiously called "a living, 
a benefice ?" In better days your place and office were 
called "a cure of souls;" what care have you for the 
souls of them by whose labours you are in general more 
than sufficiently supported ? Is it your study, your 
earnest labour, to bring sinners to God , to preach 
among your heathen parishioners the unsearchable 
riches of Christ ? 

But I should speak to the thousands who have no 
parishes, but who have their chapels, their congrega- 
tions, pew and seat rents, &c. Is it for the sake of 
these that ye have entered or continue in the gospel 
ministry? Is God witness that, in all these things, ye 
have no cloak of covetousness? Happy is the man 
who can say so, whether he has the provision which the 
law of the land allows him, or whether he lives on the 
free-will offerings of the people. 

Christian ministers, who preach the whole truth, and 
labour in the word and doctrine, are entitled to more 
than respect ; the apostle commands them to be esteemed, 
abundantly, and superabundantly ; and this is to be done 
in love ; and as men delight to serve those whom they 
love, it necessarily follows that they should provide for 
them, and see that they want neither the necessaries nor 
conveniences of life ; I do not say comforts, though 
these also should be furnished ; but of these the genuine 
messengers of Christ are frequently destitute. How- 
ever, they should have food, raiment, and lodging for 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 305 

themselves and their household. This they ought to 
hare for their work's sake. 

Many canons, at different times, have been made to 
prevent ecclesiastics from intermeddling with secular 
employments. He who will preach the gospel tho- 
roughly, and wishes to give full proof of his ministry, 
had need to have no other work. He should be wholly 
in this thing, that his profiting may appear unto all. 
There are many who sin against this direction. They 
love the world, and labour for it, and are regardless of 
the souls committed to their charge. But what are 
they, either in number or guilt, compared to the im- 
mense herd of men professing to be Christian ministers, 
who neither read nor study, and, consequently, never 
improve ? These are too conscientious to meddle with 
secular affairs, and yet have no scruple of conscience to 
while away time, be among the chief in needless self- 
indulgence, and, by their burdensome and monotonous 
ministry, become an encumbrance to the church ! Do 
vou inquire, In what sect or party are these to be found ? 
I answer, In all : idle drones, 

" Born to consume the produce of the soil," 

disgrace every department in the Christian church. 
They cannot teach, because they will not learn. 

That minister who neglects the poor, but is frequent 
in his visits to the rich, knows little of his Master's 
work, and has little of his Master's spirit. 

Time-servers and flatterers ; persons who pretend to 
be astonished at the greatness, goodness, sagacity, learn- 
ing, wisdom, &c, of rich and great men, hoping thereby 
to acquire money, influence, power, friends, and the 
like : all the flatterers of the rich are of this kind ; and 
especially those who profess to be ministers of the gos- 
pel, and who, for the sake of a more advantageous set- 
tlement or living, will sooth the rich even in their 
sins. With such persons a rich man is every thing ; 
and, if he have but a grain of grace, his piety is extolled 
to the skies. I have known several ministers of this 
character, and wish them all to read the sixteenth verse 
of Jude. 

" Neither as being lords over God's heritage.." This 
is the voice of St. Peter in his catholic epistle to the 



306 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

catholic church. According to him, there are to be no 
lords over God's heritage ; the bishops and presbyters, 
who are appointed by the Head of the church, are to 
feed the flock, to guide and to defend it, not to fleece 
and waste it ; and they are to look for their reward in 
another world, and in the approbation of God in their 
consciences. And in humility, self-abasement, self- 
renunciation, and heavenly mindedness, they are to be 
ensamples, types to the flock, moulds of a heavenly 
form, into which the spirits and lives of the flock may 
be cast, that they may come out after a perfect pattern. 
We need not ask, Does the church that arrogates to 
itself the exclusive title of u Catholic," and do its supreme 
pastors who affect to be the successors of Peter, and the 
vicars of Jesus Christ, act in this way ? They are in 
every sense the reverse of this. But we may ask, Do 
the other churches, which profess to be reformed from 
the abominations of the above, keep the advice of the 
apostle in their eye? Have they pastors according to 
God's own heart, who feed them with knowledge and 
understanding? Jer. iii, 15. Do they feed themselves, 
and not the flock ? Are they lords over the heritage of 
Christ, ruling with a high ecclesiastico-secular hand, 
disputing with their flocks about penny-farthing tithes 
and stipends, rather than contending for the faith once 
delivered to the saints? Are they heavenly moulds, 
into which the spirits and conduct of their flocks may 
be cast? I leave those who are concerned to answer 
these questions ; but I put them, in the name of God, 
to all the preachers in the land. How many among 
them properly care for the flock? Even among those 
reputed evangelical teachers, are there not some who, 
on their first coming to a parish or congregation, make 
it their first business to raise the tithes and the stipends, 
where, in all good conscience, there was before enough 
to provide them and their families with not only the 
necessaries, but all the conveniences and comforts of 
life ? conveniences and comforts which neither Jesus 
Christ nor his servant Peter ever enjoyed. And is not 
the great concern among ministers to seek for those 
places, parishes, and congregations, where the provision 
is the most ample, and the work the smallest? Preacher 
or minister, whosoever thou art who readest this, apply 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 307 

not the word to thy neighbour, whether he be state- 
appointed, congregation-appointed, or self-appointed ; 
take all to thyself; mutato nomine de te fabula nar- 
ratur. See that thy own heart, views, and conduct be 
right with God. 

The church of God has ever been troubled with such 
pretended pastors ; men who feed themselves, not the 
flock ; men who are too proud to beg, and too lazy to 
work ; who have neither grace nor gifts to plant the 
standard of the cross on the devil's territories, and by 
the power of Christ make inroads upon his kingdom, 
and spoil him of his subjects. On the contrary, by 
sowing the seeds of dissension, by means of doubtful 
disputations, and the propagation of scandals ; by glar- 
ing and insinuating speeches, (for they affect elegance 
and good breeding,) they rend Christian congregations, 
form a party for themselves, and thus live on the spoils 
of the church of God. 

How can worldly minded, hireling, fox-hunting, and 
card-playing priests read Ezek. xxxiv, 2, &c, without 
trembling to the centre of their souls ? Wo to those 
parents who bring up their children merely for church 
honours and emoluments ! Suppose a person have all 
the church's revenues, if he have God's wo, how mise- 
rable is his portion ! Let none apply this censure to any 
one class of preachers exclusively. 

How many, by their attachment to filthy lucre, have 
lost the honour of becoming or continuing ambassadors 
for the Most High ! 

How unutterable must the punishment of those be 
who are chaplains to princes or great men, and who 
either flatter them in their vices, or wink at their sins ! 

Were men as zealous to catch souls as they are to 
support their particular creeds and forms of worship, 
the state of Christianity would be more flourishing than 
it is at present. 

There are multitudes of scribes, Pharisees, and priests ; 
of reverend and right reverend men; but there are few 
that work. Jesus wishes for labourers, not gentlemen 
who are either idle drones or slaves to pleasure and 
sin. 

Alas ! alas ! how many preachers are there who appear 
prophets in their pulpits ; how many writers, and other 



308 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

evangelical workmen, the miracles of whose labour, 
learning-, and doctrine we admire ; who are nothing, 
and worse than nothing, before God, because they per- 
form not his will, but their own ! What an awful con- 
sideration, that a man of eminent gifts, whose talents are 
a source of public utility, should only be as a waymark, 
or fingerpost, in the way to eternal bliss, pointing out 
the road to others, without walking in it himself! 

Where is the grand difference between the teaching 
of scribes and Pharisees, the self-created or men-made 
ministers, and those whom God sends ? The first may 
preach what is called very good and sound doctrine; 
but it comes with no authority from God to the souls 
of the people. Therefore, the unholy is unholy still ; 
because preaching can only be effectual to the conversion 
of men, when the unction of the Holy Spirit is in it ; 
and, as these are not sent by the Lord, therefore they 
shall not profit the people at all. 

It is requisite that he who is to be judge of so many 
cases of conscience should clearly understand them. 
But is this possible, unless he have passed through those 
states and circumstances on which these cases are 
founded? I trow not. He who has not been deeply 
exercised in the furnace of affliction and trial is never 
likely to be a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, 
rightly dividing the word of truth. How can a man 
unexperienced in spiritual trials build up the church of 
Christ ! 

He who boasts of his ancestry, talks of his mighty 
sacrifices, and insinuates that he has descended from 
much dignity, respectability, ease, and affluence, in order 
to become a Methodist preacher, is the character of 
which Mr. Wesley speaks, Rule 8. Such a one affects 
the gentleman, wishes to be thought so by others, may 
be thought so by persons as empty as himself; but, in 
the light of every man of good common sense, is a vain, 
conceited, empty ass ; is unworthy of the ministry, 
should be cast out of the vineyard, and hooted from 
society. 

Preach the law and its terrors to make way for the 
gospel of Christ crucified. But take heed, lest, while 
you announce the terrors of the Lord, in order to awaken 
sinners and prepare them for Christ, that you do not 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 309 

give way to your own spirit, especially if you meet with 
opposition. 

Beware of discouraging the people ; therefore, avoid 
continually finding fault with them. This does very 
much hurt. If you find a society fallen or falling, ex- 
amine as closely as you can to find out all the good that 
is among them ; and, copying Christ's conduct toward 
the seven Asiatic churches, preface all that you have to 
say on the head of their backsliding with the good that 
remains in them; and make that good which they still 
possess, the reason why they should shake themselves 
from the dust, take courage, and earnestly strive for 
more. 

Avoid the error of those who are continually finding 
fault with their congregations because more do not at- 
tend. Bring Christ with you, and preach his truth in 
the love thereof, and you will never be without a con- 
gregation, if God have any work for you to do in that 
place. 

A preacher of the gospel should have nothing about 
him which savours of effeminacy and worldly pomp : he 
is awfully mistaken who thinks to prevail on the world 
to hear him and receive the truth, by conforming him- 
self to its fashions and manners. Excepting the mere 
colour of his clothes, we can scarcely now distinguish a 
preacher of the gospel, whether in the establishment of 
the country, or out of it, from the merest worldly man. 
Ruffles, powder, and fribble seem universally to prevail. 
Thus the church and the world begin to shake hands, 
the latter still retaining its enmity to God. How can 
those who profess to preach the doctrine of the cross 
act in this way ? Is not a worldly minded preacher, in 
the most peculiar sense, an abomination in the eyes of 
the Lord ? 

Let it be well observed that the preacher who con- 
forms to the world in his clothing is never in his ele- 
ment but when he is frequenting the houses and tables 
of the rich and great. 

The first preachers, historians, and followers of the 
doctrines of the gospel were men eminent for the aus- 
terity of their lives, the simplicity of their manners, and 
the sanctity of their conduct; they were authorized by 
God, and filled with the most precious gifts of his Spirit. 



310 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

He who makes use of God's gift to feed and strengthen 
his pride and vanity will be sure to be stripped of the 
goods wherein he trusts, and fall down into the con- 
demnation of the devil. 

He is not a seedsman of God who desires to sow by 
the wayside, and not on the proper ground ; that is, 
he who loves to preach only to genteel congregations, 
to people of sense and fashion, and feels it a pain and a 
cross to labour among the poor and the ignorant. 

The ambition which leads to spiritual lordship is one 
great cause of murmurings and animosities in religious 
societies, and has proved the ruin of the most flourishing 
churches in the universe. 

Every kind of lordship and spiritual domination over 
the church of Christ, like that exercised by the church 
of Rome, is destructive and Antichristian. 

Preachers of the gospel, and especially those who are 
instruments in God's hand of many conversions, have 
need of much heavenly wisdom ; that they may know to 
watch over, guide, and advise those who are brought to 
a sense of their sin and danger. How many auspicious 
beginnings have been ruined by men's proceeding too 
hastily, endeavouring to make their own designs take 
place, and to have the honour of that success themselves, 
which is due only to God ! 

How often is the work of God marred and discredited 
by the folly of men ! for nature will always, and Satan 
too, mingle themselves as far as they can in the genuine 
work of the Spirit, in order to discredit and destroy it. 
Nevertheless, in great revivals of religion, it is almost 
impossible to prevent wild-fire from getting in among 
the true fire ; but it is the duty of the ministers of God 
to watch against and prudently check this ; but if them- 
selves encourage it, then there will be " confusion and 
every evil work." 

A minister of the gospel of God should, above all 
men, be continent of his tongue ; his enemies, in certain 
cases, will crowd question upon question, in order so to 
puzzle and confound him that he may speak unadvisedly 
with his lips, and thus prejudice the truth he was labour- 
ing to promote and defend. The following is a good 
prayer, which all who are called to defend or proclaim 
the truths of the gospel may confidently offer to their 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 311 

God : " Let thy wisdom and light, O Lord, disperse their 
artifice and my darkness ! Cast the bright beams of thy 
light upon those who have to defend themselves against 
subtle and deceitful men ! Raise and animate their 
hearts, that they may not be wanting to the cause of 
truth. Guide their tongue, that they may not be deficient 
in prudence, nor expose thy truth by any indiscretions 
or unseasonable transports of zeal. Let meekness, gen- 
tleness, and long suffering influence and direct their 
hearts ; and may they ever feel the full weight of that 
truth : ' The wrath of man worketh not the righteousness 
of God !' " The following advice of one of the ancients 
is good : " Stand thou firm as a beaten anvil ; for it is 
the part of a good soldier to be flayed alive, and yet 
conquer." 

A minister of God should act with great caution : 
every man, properly speaking, is placed between the 
secret judgment of God and the public censure of men. 
He should do nothing rashry, that he may not justly 
incur the censure of men ; and he should do nothing but 
in the loving fear of God, that he may not incur the 
censure of his Maker. The man who scarcely ever 
allows himself to be wrong is one of whom it may be 
safely said, " He is seldom right." It is possible for a 
man to mistake his own will for the will of God, and 
his own obstinacy for inflexible adherence to his duty. 
With such persons it is dangerous to have any com- 
merce. Reader, pray to God to save thee from an 
inflated and self-sufficient mind. 

Zeal for God's truth is essentially necessary for every 
minister ; and prudence is not less so. They should be 
wisely tempered together, but this is not always the 
case. Zeal without prudence is like a flambeau in the 
hands of a blind man ; it may enlighten and warm, but 
it may also destroy the spiritual building. Human pru- 
dence should be avoided as well as intemperate zeal ; 
this kind of prudence consists in a man's being careful 
not to bring himself into trouble, and not to hazard his 
reputation, credit, interest, or fortune, in the perform- 
ance of his duty. Evangelical wisdom consists in our 
suffering and losing all things, rather than be wanting 
in the discharge of our obligations. 

Discipline must be exercised in the Christian church ; 



312 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

without this it will soon differ but little from the wil- 
derness of this world. But what judgment, prudence, 
piety, and caution are requisite in the execution of this 
most important branch of a minister's duty ! He may 
be too easy and tender, and permit the gangrene to 
remain till the flock be infected with it. Or he may be 
rigid and severe, and destroy parts that are vital, while 
only professing to take away what is vitiated. A back- 
slider is one who once knew less or more of the salva- 
tion of God. Hear what God says concerning such : 
" Turn, ye backsliders, for I am married unto you." See 
how unwilling he is to give them up ! He suffers long, 
and is kind : do thou likewise ; and when thou art 
obliged to cut off the offender from the church of Christ, 
follow him still with thy best advice and heartiest 
prayers. 

There are some who seem to take a barbarous plea- 
sure in expelling members from the church. They 
should be continued in as long as possible: while they 
are in the church, under its ordinances and discipline, 
there is some hope that their errors may be corrected ; 
but w T hen once driven out again into the world, that 
hope must necessarily become extinct. As judgment is 
God's strange work, so excommunication should be the 
strange, the last, and the most reluctantly performed 
w r ork of every Christian minister. 

"Without preferring one before another." — Without 
prejudice. Promote no man's cause ; make not up thy 
mind on any case, till thou hast weighed both sides and 
heard both parties, with their respective witnesses , and 
then act impartially, as the matter may appear to be 
proved. Do not treat any man, in religious matters, 
according to the rank he holds in life, or according to any 
personal attachment thou mayest have for him. Every 
man should be dealt with in the church as he will be 
dealt with at the judgment seat of Christ. A minister 
of the gospel, who, in the exercise of discipline in the 
church, is swayed and warped by secular considerations, 
will be a curse rather than a blessing to the people of 
God. Accepting the persons of the rich, in ecclesiastical 
matters, has been a source of corruption in Christianity. 
With some ministers, the show of piety in a rich man 
goes farther than the soundest Christian experience in 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 313 

the poor. What account can such persons give of their 
stewardship ? 

A useful, zealous preacher, though unskilled in learned 
languages, is much greater in the sight of God, and in 
the eye of sound common sense, than he who has the 
gift of those learned tongues; " except he interpret :*' 
and we seldom find great scholars good preachers. This 
should humble the scholar, who is too apt to be proud 
of his attainments, and despise his less learned but most 
useful brother. This judgment of St. Paul is too little 
regarded. 

Ever let your ear be open to the cry of the afflicted 
and dying ; in the warmest and most affectionate man- 
ner give them directions and exhortations, open to them 
the Fountain of mercy, and lead them straight to God 
through the sacrifice of his Son. Show them, prove to 
them, that with him is mercy, and with him a plen- 
teous salvation ; and that in very faithfulness he has 
afflicted them. While you are ready at every call, make 
use of all your prudence to prevent the reception of 
contagion. Do not breathe near the infected person. 
Contagion is generally taken into the stomach by means 
of the breath ; not that the breath goes into the stomach, 
but the noxious effluvia are by inspiration brought into 
the mouth, and immediately connect themselves with 
the whole surface of the tongue and fauces, and, in 
swallowing the saliva, are taken down into the stomach, 
and, there mixing with the aliment in the process of 
digestion, are conveyed, by means of the lacteal vessels, 
through the whole of. the circulation, corrupting and 
assimilating to themselves the whole mass of blood, and 
thus carry death to the heart, lungs, and to the utmost 
of the capillary system. In visiting fever cases, I have 
been often conscious of having taken the contagion. 
On my returning home, I have drunk a few mouthfuls of 
warm water, and then with the small point of a feather, 
irritated the stomach to cause it to eject its contents. 
By these means I have frequently, through mercy, been 
enabled to escape many a danger and many a death. 
Never swallow your saliva in a sick room, especially 
where there is contagion ; keep a handkerchief for this 
purpose, and wash your mouth frequently with tepid 
water. Keep to windward of every corpse vou bury. 

14 



314 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

Never go out with an empty stomach, nor let your 
strength be prostrated by long abstinence from food. 

In a thousand instances an apostolic preacher, who 
goes into the wilderness to seek the lost sheep, will be 
exposed to hunger and cold, and to other inconveniences ; 
he must therefore resign himself to God, depending on 
his providence for the necessaries of life. If God have 
sent him, he is bound to support him, and will do it : 
anxiety, therefore, in him, is a double crime ; as it insi- 
nuates a bad opinion of the Master who has employed 
him. Every missionary should make himself master of 
this subject. 

Augustine, archbishop of Tarragon, was one of the 
most learned men of the age : he. gave literally all he 
had to the poor ; so that when he died, in 1586, there 
was not found sufficient cash in his coffers to procure 
him a decent burial. To any of his archiepiscopal bre- 
thren, " Go thou and do likewise," might be esteemed a 
hard saying. 

Let a minister of Christ but impair his health by his 
pastoral labours ; presently " he is distracted ; he has 
not the least conduct nor discretion." But let a man 
forget his soul, let him destroy his health by debauch- 
eries, let him expose his life through ambition, and he 
may, notwithstanding, pass for a very prudent and sen- 
sible man ! 

Men who have laboured to bring the mass of the 
common people from ignorance, irreligion, and general 
profligacy of manners, to an acquaintance with them- 
selves and God, and to a proper knowledge of their duty 
to him and to each other, have been often branded as 
being disaffected to the state, and as movers of sedition 
among the people ! 

A minister's trials and comforts are permitted and 
sent for the benefit of the church. What a miserable 
preacher must he be who has all his divinity by study 
and learning, and nothing by experience ! If his soul 
have not gone through all the travail of regeneration, if 
his heart have not felt the love of God shed abroad in 
it by the Holy Ghost, he can neither instruct the igno- 
rant nor comfort the distressed. 

A minister of Christ is represented as a day labourer ; 
he comes into the harvest, not to become lord of it, not 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 315 

to live on the labour of others, but to work, and to 
labour his day. Though the work may be very severe, 
yet, to use a familiar expression, there is good wages in 
the harvest home ; and the day, though hot, is but a 
short one. 

When Christ shall appear to judge the world in right- 
eousness, ye who have fed his flock, who have taken the 
superintendence of it, not by constraint, not for "filthy 
lucre's sake," not as lords over the heritage, but with a 
" ready mind," employing body, soul, spirit, time, and 
talents, in endeavouring to pluck sinners as brands from 
eternal burnings, and build up the church of Christ on its 
most holy faith ; ye shall " receive a crown of glory" that 
" fadeth not away ;" an eternal nearness and intimacy 
with the ineffably glorious God ; so that ye who have 
turned many to righteousness shall shine, not merely as 
stars, but as suns, in the kingdom of your Father ! O ye 
heavenly minded, diligent, self-denying pastors after 
God's own heart, whether ye be in the church esta- 
blished by the state, or in those divisions widely separated 
from or nearly connected with it, take courage ; preach 
Jesus; press through all difficulties in the faith of your 
God ; fear no evil while meditating nothing but good. 
Ye are stars in the right hand of Jesus, who walks 
among your golden candlesticks, and has lighted that 
lamp of life which ye are appointed to trim ; fear not, 
your labour in the Lord cannot be in vain ! Never, 
never can ye preach one sermon in the spirit of your 
office which the God of all grace shall permit to be 
unfruitful ; ye carry and sow the seed of the kingdom 
by the command and on the authority of your God ; ye 
sow it, and the heavens shall drop down dew upon it. 
Ye may go forth weeping, though bearing this precious 
seed ; but ye shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, 
bringing your sheaves with you. Amen, even so, Lord 
Jesus ! 

God does not reward his servants according to the 
success of their labour, because that depends on him- 
self; but he rew r ards them according to the quantum 
of faithful labour which they bestow on his work. In 
this sense none can say, " I have laboured in vain, and 
spent my strength for naught." 

On the other hand, if they be faithful, their labour 



316 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— MINISTERS AND PEOPEET. 

shall not be in vain, and their safety shall be great. He 
that toucheth them toucheth the apple of God's eye, 
and none shall be able to pluck them out of his hand. 
They are the angels and ambassadors of the Lord ; their 
persons are sacred ; they are the messengers of the 
churches, and the glory of Christ. Should they lose 
their lives in the work, it will be only a speedier en- 
trance into an eternal glory. 

Sl The rougher the way, the shorter their stay ; 
The troubles that rise 
Shall gloriously hurry their souls to the skies." 

Go on in the name of God ; I am your invariable 
friend ; I labour early and late for you ; I feel the people 
as if they were members of my own family. As to small 
friends, value them not. God is with you, and there- 
fore the devil must be against you. Preach Jesus and 
his present and full salvation. This will carry you 
through, because God will infallibly bear testimony to 
the doctrine that puts due honour on the sacrificial blood 
of his Son. No other doctrine, however highly it may 
speak of Him who shed it, does honour to the great 
design of God, than that which shows that it saves from 
the power and guilt of sin, and cleanses from all un- 
righteousness ; not in a future world, but in this, and in 
the present time. 

Go on ; fear nothing ; God is with you, and nothing 
can withstand the all-conquering blood and mighty 
Spirit of the Lord Jesus. Proclaim loudly to the poor 
sinners that Jesus Christ tasted death for every man ; 
and that his blood cleanses from all unrighteousness. 
This is the doctrine which God will own. What has the 
wretched stuff of C n done for the world ? Pro- 
duced a spurious Christianity, and left the people in 
their sins ! Walk with God, and you need fear no 
reproach. Luther said, Evangelium predicare, est fu- 
rorem mundi in te derivare. Yes, he who preaches the 
unadulterated doctrines of the God who bought him 
will be hated by the Christian world. Jesus and his 
apostles were persecuted, not by the heathens, but by 
Jews professing godliness ; so spurious Christians are 
the prime persecutors of the genuine followers of the 
Lord Jesus. Fear them not ; our God is mightier than 
their devil ! Amen. Selah. Whiskey and tobacco will 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 317 

also fall before the Spirit of Christ : reason mildly with 
those who are addicted to them ; in this respect you will 
gain ground by degrees. 

Be urgent, whether the times be prosperous or ad- 
verse, whenever there is an opportunity ; and when 
there is none, strive to make one. The Judge is at the 
door, and to every man eternity is at hand ! Wherever 
thou meetest a sinner, speak to him the word of recon- 
ciliation. Do not be contented with stated times and 
accustomed places merely ; all time and place belong to 
God, and are proper for his work. Wherever it can 
be done, there it should be done. Satan will omit nei- 
ther time nor place where he can destroy. Omit thou 
none where thou mayest be the instrument of salvation 
to any. 

He who wishes to save souls will find few opportuni- 
ties to rest. As Satan is going " about as a roaring lion 
seeking whom he may devour," the messenger of God 
should imitate his diligence, that he may counteract his 
work. 

Let no minister of God think he has delivered his 
own soul till he has made an offer of salvation to every 
city and village wilhin his reach. 

I have taken care that your credit should ever be 
preserved. For I think it fatal to our missionary work 
in any place, to dishonour the bill of a missionary ; or 
to trifle with his just demands so as to render his credit 
suspicious. Take care to be ever prudent and econo- 
mic ; and while God spares me in reference to your 
station, I shall take care that your credit shall be pre- 
served. 

A scandal or heresy in the church of God is ruinous 
at all times, but particularly so when the cause is in its 
infancy ; and therefore the messengers of God cannot 
be too careful to lay the foundation well in doctrine, to 
establish the strictest discipline, and to be very cautious 
whom they admit and accredit as members of the church 
of Christ. It is certain that the door should be opened 
wide to admit penitent sinners ; but the watchman 
should ever stand by, to see that no improper person 
enter in. Christian prudence should ever be connected 
with Christian zeal. It is a great work to bring sinners 
to Christ *, it is a greater work to preserve them in the 



318 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

faith ; and it requires much grace and much wisdom to 
keep the church of Christ pure, not only by not permit- 
ting the unholy to enter, but by casting out those who 
apostatize or work iniquity. Slackness in discipline 
generally precedes corruption of doctrine ; the former 
generating the latter. 

The ministers of God are compared to stewards, of 
whom the strictest fidelity is required. 1. Fidelity to 
God, in publishing his truth with zeal, defending it 
with courage, and recommending it with prudence. 
2. Fidelity to Christ, whose representatives they are, in 
honestly and fully recommending his grace and salvation 
on the ground Of his passion and death, and preaching 
his maxims in all their force and purity. 3. Fidelity 
to the church, in taking heed to keep up a godly disci- 
pline, admitting none into it but those who have aban- 
doned their sins ; and permitting none to continue in 
it that do not continue to adorn the doctrine of God 
their Saviour. 4. Fidelity to their own ministry, walk- 
ing so as to bring no blame on the gospel ; avoiding the 
extremes of indolent tenderness on one hand, and aus- 
tere severity on the other ; considering the flock, not 
as their flock, but the flock of Jesus Christ ; watching, 
ruling, and feeding it according to the order of their 
divine Master. 

A preacher who is not a man of prayer cannot have a 
proper knowledge of the nature and design of the gos- 
pel ministry; cannot be alive to God in his own soul ; 
nor is likely to become instrumental in the salvation of 
others. In order to do good, a man must jeceive good : 
prayer is the way in which divine assistance is received ; 
and in the work of the ministry, no man can do any 
thing unless it be given him from above. In many 
cases the success of a preacher's labours depends more 
on his prayers than on his public preaching. 

Live to God, pray much, read much, labour hard, and 
have immeasurable faith. 

Earnest frequent prayer to God, and keeping up a 
living sense of your acceptance with him, are of the first 
and last necessity. Breathe continually in the divine 
atmosphere, and then the contagion of sin will not be 
able to reach you. Keep yourselves in the love of God, 
and then that wicked one shall not touch you. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 319 

In all my long- experience I have been led to see that 
ninety-nine out of the hundred of offences that take 
place in the sacred ministry are occasioned by unguarded 
conversation with women, and incautiously touching 
spirituous liquors. Against both these you cannot be 
too much on your guard. Among people of simple 
manners, the first is peculiarly dangerous ; because, 
when confidence takes place, all distance is forgotten, 
familiarity ensues, intimacy becomes grafted on that, and 
then irregular affections are easily produced. " Con- 
verse sparingly with women," says Mr. Wesley, "espe- 
cially with young women." Those who are naturally 
of a free and affectionate disposition are, in this case, 
in most danger. A supercilious carriage ill becomes a 
minister of Christ, whose avocation binds him to be 
servant of all. To the young act as brothers ; to the 
old as respectful children : keep a due distance ; do not 
go too far off; do not approach too near. The first will 
excite prejudice against you; the latter will lead almost 
imperceptibly to the gulf whence there is no returning. 

As to a total abstinence from spirituous liquors where 
no other beverage can be found, I know not well what 
to say. If any be taken, it should be very little, or well 
diluted ; a little in cold water, without any sweetening, 
would be best. Try toast and water : even oat bread, 
where wheaten cannot be found, will do : toast either 
well, till perfectly brown throughout, and then pour 
boiling water on it, cover it up, and let it stand two 
hours at least before you use it. This is a most whole- 
some and diluting beverage. 

Only to shine is but vanity ; and to burn without 
shining will never edify the church of God. Some 
shine, and some burn, but few both shine and burn ; and 
many there are who are denominated pastors, who 
neither shine nor burn. He who wishes to save souls 
must both burn and shine : the clear light of the sacred 
records must fill his understanding ; and the holy flame 
of loving zeal must occupy his heart. Zeal without 
knowledge is continually blundering ; and knowledge 
without zeal makes no converts to Christ. ' 

Never take a text which you do not fully understand ; 
and make it a point of conscience to give the literal 
meaning of it to the people : this m a matter of great 



320 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

and solemn importance. To give God's words a differ- 
ent meaning to what he intended to convey by them, or 
to put a construction upon them which we have not the 
fullest proof he has intended, is awful indeed ! 

Never appear to contradict the Holy Spirit by what is 
called treating a subject negatively and positively. Sel- 
dom take a very short text. Never take a text which, 
out of its proper connection, can mean nothing. I would 
most solemnly guard you against what is termed fine or 
flowery preaching. I do not mean preaching in elegant, 
correct, and dignified language ; as every thing of this 
kind is quite in place, when employed in proclaiming 
and illustrating the records of our salvation ; but I mean 
a spurious birth, which endeavours to honour itself by 
this title. Some preachers think they greatly improve 
their own discourses by borrowing the fine sayings of 
others ; and when these are frequently brought forward 
in the course of a sermon, the preacher is said to be a 
fiowery preacher. Such flowers, used in such a way, 
bring to my remembrance the custom in some countries 
of putting full-blown roses, or sprigs of rosemary, laven- 
der, and thyme, in the hands of the dead, when they are 
put in their coffins. 

But the principal fault in this kind of preaching is the 
using a vast number of words long and high sounding, 
to which the preacher himself appears to have fixed no 
specific ideas, and which are often foreign, in the con- 
nection in which he places them, to the meaning which 
they radically convey. 

How careful should the ministers of Christ be that 
they proclaim nothing as truth, and accredit nothing as 
truth, but what comes from their Master ! They should 
take heed lest, after having preached to others, them- 
selves should be castaways ; lest God should say unto 
them as he said of Coniah, " As I live, saith the Lord, 
though Coniah, the son of Jehoiakim, were the signet 
upon my right hand, yet would I pluck thee hence." 

It is worthy of remark, that in all the revivals of re- 
ligion with which we are acquainted God appears to have 
made very little use of human eloquence, even when 
possessed by pious men. His own nervous truths, an- 
nounced by plain common sense, though in homely 
phrase, have been the general means of the conviction 



Christian theologv — ministers and people. 321 

and conversion of sinners. Human eloquence and learn- 
ing have often been successfully employed in defending 
the outworks of Christianity; but simplicity and truth 
have preserved the citadel. 

We should be cautious how we appeal to heathens, 
however eminent, in behalf of morality ; because much 
may be collected from them on the other side. In like 
manner we should take heed how we quote the fathers 
in proof of the doctrines of the gospel ; because he who 
knows them best, knows that on many of those subjects 
they blow hot and cold. 

In most Christian churches there appears to be but 
one office, that of preacher ; and one gift, that by which 
he professes to preach. The apostles, prophets, evan- 
gelists, pastors, and teachers, are all compounded in the 
class »-' preachers ;" and many, to whom God has given 
nothing but the gift of exhortation, take texts to explain 
them ; and thus lose their time, and mar their ministry. 

" Not handling the word of God deceitfully." — Not 
using the doctrines of the gospel to serve any secular 
or carnal purpose ; not explaining away their force so 
as to palliate or excuse sin ; not generalizing its pre- 
cepts so as to excuse many in particular circumstances 
from obedience, especially in that which most crossed 
their inclinations. There were deceitful handlers of 
this kind in Corinth, and there are many of them still 
in the garb of Christian ministers ; persons who disguise 
that part of their creed which, though they believe it is 
of God, would make them unpopular ; affecting mode- 
ration in order to procure a larger audience and more 
extensive support; not attacking prevalent and popular 
vices ; calling dissipation of mind relaxation ; and 
worldly and carnal pleasures innocent amusements, &c. : 
in a word, turning with the tide, and shifting with the 
wind of popular opinion, prejudice, fashion, &c. 

The truth of God should be so preached to all the 
members of the church of God, that they may all re- f 
ceive an increase of grace and life ; so that each, in 
whatever state he may be, may get forward in the way 
of truth and holiness. In the church of Christ there are 
persons in various states : the careless, the penitent, the 
lukewarm, the tempted, the diffident, the little child, 
the young man, and the father. He who has got a 
14* 



322 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

talent for the edification of only one of these classes 
should not stay long in a place, else the whole body 
cannot grow up in all things under his ministry. 

A preacher whose mind is well stored with divine 
truths, and who has a sound judgment, will suit his dis- 
courses to the circumstances and states of his hearers. 
He who preaches the same sermon to every congrega- 
tion gives the fullest proof that, however well he may 
speak, he is not a scribe who is instructed in the king- 
dom of heaven. 

In preaching on parables and similitudes, great care 
should be taken to discover their object and design, and 
those grand and leading circumstances by which the 
author illustrates his subjects. 

Every preacher of God's word should take heed that 
it is God's message that he delivers to the people. Let 
him not suppose, because it is according to his own 
creed or confession of faith, that therefore it is God's 
word. False doctrines and fallacies without end are 
foisted on the world in this way. Bring the creea 1 first 
to the word of God, and scrupulously try whether it be 
right ; and when this is done, leave it where you please ; 
take the Bible, and warn them from God's word recorded 
there. 

Avoid paraphrasing a whole book or epistle in a set 
of discourses ; it is tedious, and often produces many 
sleepers. 

From one of the royal household of George III., I 
have received the following anecdote : " The late Bishop 
F., of Salisbury, having procured a young man of pro- 
mising abilities to preach before the king, and the young 
man having, to his lordship's apprehension, acquitted 
himself well, the bishop, in conversation with the king 
afterward, wishing to get the king's opinion, took the 
liberty to say, ' Does not your majesty think that the 
young man who had the honour to preach before your 
majesty is likely to make a good clergyman, and has 
this morning delivered a very good sermon?' To which 
the king, in his blunt manner, hastily replied, * It might 
have been a good sermon, my lord, for aught I know ; 
but I consider no sermon good that has nothing of Christ 
in it!' " 

In 1790 the conference was held in Bristol, the last 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 323 

in which that most eminent man of God, John Wesley, 
presided ; who seemed to have his mind particularly 
impressed with the necessity of making some permanent 
rule that might tend to lessen the excessive labour of 
the preachers, which he saw was shortening the lives of 
many useful men. In a private meeting with some of 
the principal and senior preachers, which was held in 
Mr. Wesley's study, to prepare matters for the confer- 
ence, he proposed that a rule should be made that no 
preacher should preach thrice on the same day. Messrs. 
Mather, Pawson, Thompson, and others said this would 
be impracticable ; as it was absolutely necessary, in 
most cases, that the preachers should preach thrice every 
Lord's day, without which the places could not be sup- 
plied. Mr. W. replied, "It must be given up ; we shall 
lose our preachers by such excessive labour." They 
answered, " We have all done so ; and you, even at an 
advanced age, have continued to do so." " What I have 
done," said he, "is out of the question ; my life and 
strength have been under an especial Providence; be- 
sides, I know better than they how to preach without 
injuring myself; and no man can preach thrice a day 
without killing himself sooner or later ; and the custom 
shall not be continued." They pressed the point no 
farther, finding that he was determined ; but they de- 
ceived him after all, by altering the minute thus, when it 
went to the press : "No preacher shall any more preach 
three times in the same day (to the same congrega- 
tion)." By which clause the minute was entirely neu- 
tralized. He who preaches the ^gospel as he ought, 
must do it with his whole strength of body and soul; 
and he who undertakes a labour of this kind thrice every 
Lord's day will infallibly shorten his life by it. He 
who, instead of preaching, talks to the people, merely 
speaks about good things, or tells a religious story, will 
never injure himself by such an employment ; such a 
person does not labour in the word and doctrine ; he 
tells his tale, and as he preaches, so his congregation 
believes, and sinners are left as he found them. 

Go from your knees to the chapel. Get a renewal 
of your commission every time you go to preach, in a 
renewed sense of the favour of God. Carry your 
authority to declare the gospel of Christ not in youi 



324 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

hand, but in your heart. When in the pulpit, be always 
solemn : say nothing to make your congregation laugh. 
Remember you are speaking for eternity; and triflino- 
is inconsistent with such awful subjects as the great 
God, the agony and death of Christ, the torments of hell, 
and the blessedness of heaven. 

Never assume an air of importance while in the pul- 
pit ; you stand in an awful place, and God hates the 
proud man. Never be boisterous or dogmatical. Self- 
confidence will soon lead to a forgetfulness of the pre- 
sence of God; and then you will speak your own 
words, and perhaps in your own spirit too. 

Avoid all quaint and fantastic attitudes ; all queer 
noddings, ridiculous stoopings, and erections of your 
body, skipping from side to side of the desk, knitting 
your brows ; and every other theatrical or foppish air, 
which tends to disgrace the pulpit, and to render your- 
self contemptible. Never shake or flourish your hand- 
kerchief; this is abominable : nor stuff it into your 
bosom ; this is unseemly. Do not gaze about on your 
congregation. Endeavour to gain their attention. Re- 
mind them of the presence of God. 

Give out the page and measure of the hymn, and the 
hymn itself, distinctly and with a full voice. While 
praying, keep your eyes closed : at such a time you 
have nothing to do with outward objects; the most 
important matters are at issue between God and you ; 
and he is to be contemplated with the eye of the mind. 
If you wish the people to join with you in this part of 
the worship, speak so as to be heard, even at the begin- 
ning. Whispering petitions to God maybe genteel, for 
aught I know ; but I am certain it is not to the use of 
edification. In your prayers avoid long prefaces and 
circumlocutions : you find none of these in the Bible. 
Some have got a method of complimenting the Most 
High on the dignity of his nature, and the glory of his 
heavens : this you should studiously avoid. Read your 
text distinctly, and begin to speak about the middle of 
your voice, not only that you may be readily heard, but 
that you may rise or fall as occasion may require. 
Never drop your voice at the end of a sentence ; this is 
barbarous and intolerable. 

Be sure to have the matter of your text well arranged 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 325 

in your own mind before you come into the pulpit, that 
you may not be confused while speaking. But beware 
of too much dividing and subdividing ; by these means 
the word of God has been made to speak something, any 
thing, or nothing, according to the creed or prejudice of 
the preacher. In whatever way you handle your text, 
take care, when you have exhausted the matter of it, 
not to go over it again. Apply every thing of import- 
ance as you go along ; and when you have done, learn 
to make an end. There are some who sing long hymns, 
and pray long prayers, merely to fill up the time : this 
is a shocking profanation of these sacred ordinances, 
and has the most direct tendency to bring them into 
contempt. 

While you are engaged in the pulpit in recommending 
the salvation of God, endeavour to feel the truth you 
preach, and diffuse a divine animation through every 
part. As the preacher appears to preach the people hear 
and believe. You may set it down as an incontro- 
vertible truth, that none of your hearers will be more 
affected with your discourse than yourself. A dull, dead 
preacher makes a dull, dead congregation. 

Shun all controversies about politics ; and especially 
that disgrace of the pulpit, political preaching. I have 
known this do much evil ; but though I have often heard 
it, I never knew an instance of its doing good. 

A sentence or two of affectionate prayer in different 
parts of the discourse has a wonderful tendency to en- 
liven it, and to make the people hear with concern and 
interest. 

Never ape any person, however eminent he may be 
for piety or ministerial abilities. Every man has a fort, 
as it is called, of his own; and if he keep within it he is 
impregnable. 

A fine appearance and a fine voice cover many weak- 
nesses and defects, and strongly and forcibly recommend 
what is spoken, though not remarkable for depth of 
thought or solidity of reasoning. Many popular orators 
have little beside their persons and their voice to recom- 
mend them. 

When you baptize, let it be, if possible, in the face 
of the congregation ; and not in the vestry, nor in pri- 
vate. Take occasion in a few words to explain its 



S26 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

nature and importance, both to the congregation and to 
the parents ; and insist on the personal attendance of the 
latter, that you may give them those directions and 
charges relative to their training up their children in the 
discipline and admonition of the Lord which the case 
requires; and take heed that all whom you baptize be 
properly registered : and let the register book be kept 
in the most secure place, because it is of great import- 
ance ; and in all cases in which a baptismal register 
can be applied, these registers are complete evidences 
in law. 

In administering the sacrament of the Lord's supper, 
be deeply reverent and devout in all your deportment. 
Pour out the wine into the cups leisurely, and take heed 
that you spill not one drop of it. Shedding the wine on 
the table cloth, to say the least of it, is highly unbe- 
coming and ungraceful : keep firm hold both of the 
bread and the cup, till you feel the communicant has hold 
with yourself. 

The only preaching worth any thing, in God's account, 
and which the fire will not burn up, is that which 
labours to convict and convince the sinner of his sin, to 
bring him into contrition for it, to convert him from it ; 
to lead him to the blood of the covenant, that his con- 
science may be purged from its guilt, — to the Spirit of 
judgment and burning, that he may be purified from its 
infection, — and then to build him up on this most holy 
faith, by causing him to pray in the Holy Ghost, and 
keep himself in the love of God, looking for the mercy 
of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life : this is the 
system pursued by the apostles, and it is that alone 
which God will own to the conversion of sinners. I 
speak from the experience of nearly fifty years in the 
public ministry of the word : this is the most likely 
mode to produce the active soul of divinity, while the 
body is little else but the preacher's creed. 

A man who preaches in such a language as the people 
cannot comprehend may do for a stage player or a 
mountebank, but not for a minister of Christ. 

How foolish the preacher who uses fine and hard 
words in his preaching, which, though admired by the 
shallow, convey no instruction to the multitude. 

A harsh, unfeeling method of preaching the promises 



CHRISTIAN TI/EOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 327 

of the gospel, and a smiling manner of producing the 
terrors of the Lord, are equally reprehensible, Some 
preachers are always severe and magisterial ; others 
are always mild and insinuating : neither of these can 
do God's work ; and it would take two such to make 
one preacher. 

How injudicious must that preacher be who frequently 
brings his people abstract questions concerning civil 
rights and civil wrongs, party politics, reasons of state, 
financial blunders, royal prerogatives, divine right of 
kings, questions on which a thousand things maybe said 
jjro and con : and, after all, a wise and dispassionate 
man finds it extremely difficult, after hearing both sides, 
to make up his mind as to that which he should from 
duty and interest attach himself. 

Rhetoric or oratory is studied by many much more 
than divinity. A copious flow and elegance of language, 
words of splendid sound, imposing epithets, and striking 
figures and similes are everywhere sought, in order to 
form harmonious sentences and finely turned periods ;— 
a fustian language, misnamed oratory, is thus introduced 
into the church of Christ ; but when the words of this 
are analyzed, they are found, however musically ar- 
ranged, to be destitute of force ; so that a dozen of such 
expressions will labour in vain to produce one single 
impressive idea that can illuminate the understanding, 
correct the judgment, or persuade the conscience either 
to hate sin or love righteousness. " How forcible are 
right words," can never be applied to such sermons ; 
they may please the giddy and superficial, but they nei- 
ther edify the saint, nor bring conviction into the bosom 
of the sinner. And what redounds to their reproach 
and discredit is, they are flowers meanly stolen from the 
gardens of others. 

Ministers continually harping on, " Ye are dead, ye 
are dead ; there is little or no Christianity among you," 
&.c, &c, are a contagion in a church, and spread de- 
solation and death wheresoever they go. It is far better 
to say, in such cases, " Ye have lost ground, but ye have 
not lost all your ground ; ye might have been much far- 
ther advanced, but through mercy ye are still in the 
way. The Spirit of God is grieved by you, but it is 
evident he has not forsaken you. Ye have not walked 



328 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE, 

in the light as ye should, but your candlestick is not yet 
removed, and still the light shines. Ye have not much 
zeal, but ye have a little. In short, God still strives 
with you, still loves you, still waits to be gracious to you ; 
take courage, set out afresh, come to God through 
Christ; believe, love, obey, and you will soon find days 
more blessed than you have ever yet experienced." 
Exhortations and encouragements of this kind are sure 
to produce the most blessed effects ; and under such the 
work of God infallibly revives. 

Stay in your own lodging as much as possible, that 
you may have time for prayer and study. 

He who knows the value of time, and will redeem it 
from useless chitchat and trifling visits, will find enough 
for all the purposes of his own salvation, the cultivation 
of his mind, and the work of the ministry. 

He to whom time is not precious, and who lives not 
by rule, never finds time sufficient for any thing, is 
always embarrassed, always in a hurry, and never capa- 
ble of bringing one good purpose to proper effect. 

Seldom frequent the tables of the rich or great. If 
you do, it will unavoidably prove a snare to you: the 
unction of God will perish from your mind; and your 
preaching be only a dry, barren repetition of old things. 
The bread of God in your hands will be like the dry, 
mouldy, Gibeonitish crusts, mentioned Josh, ix, 5. Visit 
the people, and speak to them about their souls as often 
and as much as you can ; but be not at the mercy of 
every invitation to go out for a morsel of bread. If you 
take not this advice, you will do no good, get no good, 
and utterly evaporate your influence and consequence. 

I have such high notions of literary merit, and the 
academical distinctions to which it is entitled, that 1 
would not, in conscience, take, or cause to betaken, in 
my own behalf, any step to possess the one, or to as- 
sume the other: everything of this kind should come, 
not only unbought, but unsolicited. I should as soon 
think of being learned by proxy, as of procuring aca- 
demical honours by influence ; and could one farthing 
purchase me the highest degree under the sun, I would 
not give it : not that I lightly esteem such honours ; I 
believe them, when given through merit, next to those 
which come from God ; but I consider them misplaced 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 329 

when conferred in consequence of influence or recom- 
mendation, in which the party concerned has any part, 
near or remote. 

Bodies of divinity I do most heartily dislike : they 
tend to supersede the Bible; and, independently of this, 
they are exceedingly dangerous ; they often give false 
notions, bring their own kind of proofs to confirm those 
notions, and by their mode of quoting insulated texts of 
Scripture, greatly pervert the true meaning of the word 
of God. This is my opinion of them : the ministers 
who preach from them fill the heads of their hearers with 
systematic knowledge. 

In dead languages it is well to select the best authors, 
and establish them as standards of pure and elegant 
composition ; for, in such languages no farther excel- 
lence can be expected. But in those languages which 
continue to be vernacular, the case is widely different ; 
they may still be improved and polished, therefore no 
writer should be set up as a standard of unsurpassable 
excellence. Why may not the English, for instance, 
expect writers who shall as far excel Addison, Steele, 
Johnson, Spenser, Shakspeare, Milton, and Pope, as 
they have surpassed their predecessors ? Certainly the 
English language and the British genius, notwithstand- 
ing their almost unrivalled excellence, are still capable 
of greater perfection. 

A good pastor will not, like a miser, keep what he 
has to himself, to please his fancy : nor, like a mer- 
chant, traffic with it to enrich himself, but, like a bounti- 
ful father or householder, distribute it with a liberal, 
though judicious hand, for the comfort and support of 
the whole heavenly family. 

A late morning student is a lazy one, and will rarely 
make a true scholar ; and he who sits up late at night, 
not only burns his life's candle at both ends* but puts a 
red-hot poker to the middle. 

People. — Be very cautious of receiving evil reports 
against those whose business it is to preach to others, 
and correct their vices. Do not consider an elder as 
guilty of any alleged crime, unless it be proved by two 
or three witnesses. This the law of Moses required in 
resoect to all. Among the Romans, a plebeian might be 



330 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

condemned on the deposition of one credible witness ; 
but it required two to convict a senator. The reason of 
this difference is evident: those whose business it is to 
correct others will usually have many enemies ;. great 
caution, therefore, should be used in admitting accusa- 
tions against such persons. 

God requires that his people should pray for his mi- 
nisters ; and it is not to be wondered at, if they who pray 
not for their preachers should receive no benefit from 
their teaching. How can they expect God to send a 
message by him for whom they who are the most in- 
terested have not prayed ? If the grace and Spirit of 
Christ be not worth the most earnest prayers which a 
man can offer, they, and the heaven to which they lead, 
are not worth having. 

Even the success of the apostles depended, in a cer- 
tain way, on the prayers of the church. Few Christian 
congregations feel, as they ought, that it is their bounden 
duty to pray for the success of the gospel, both among 
themselves and in the world. The church is weak, dark, 
poor, and imperfect, because it prays little. 

There are some people who are unwilling to grant the 
common necessaries of life to those who watch over 
them in the Lord. For there are such people even in 
the Christian church ! If the preachers of the gospel 
were as parsimonious of the bread of life as some con- 
gregations and Christian societies are of the bread that 
perisheth ; and if the preacher gave them a spiritual 
nourishment as base, as mean, and as scanty as the 
temporal support which they afford him, their souls 
must, without doubt, have nearly a famine of the bread 
of life. 

St. Paul contends that a preacher of the gospel has a 
right to his support ; and he has proved this from the 
law, from the gospel, and from the common sense and 
consent of men. If a man who does not labour takes 
his maintenance from the church of God, it is not only 
a domestic theft, but a sacrilege. He that gives up his 
time to this labour has a right to the support of himself 
and family. Those who refuse the labourer his hire are 
condemned by God and good men. How liberal are 
many to public places of amusement, or to some popular 
charity, where their names are sure to be published 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 331 

abroad ; while the man who watches over their souls is 
fed with the most parsimonious hand ! Will not God 
abate this pride, and reprove this hard heartedness ? 

Contribute to the support of the man who has dedi- 
cated himself to the work of the ministry, and who gives 
up his time and his life to preach the gospel. It appears 
that some of the believers in Galatia could receive the 
Christian ministry without contributing to its support. 
This is both ungrateful and base. We do not expect 
that a common schoolmaster will give up his time to 
teach our children their alphabet without being paid for 
it ; and can we suppose that it is just for any person to 
sit under the preaching of the gospel in order to grow 
wise unto salvation by it, and not contribute to the sup- 
port of the spiritual teacher? It is unjust. 

Let all churches, all congregations of Christians, from 
whom their ministers and preachers can claim nothing 
by law, and for whom the state makes no provision, 
ask themselves : " Do we deal with these in a manner 
worthy of God, and worthy of the profession we make ? 
Do we suffer them to lack the bread that perisheth, 
while they minister to us with no sparing hand the bread 
of life?" Let a certain class of religious people, who 
will find themselves out when they read this, consider 
whether, when their preachers have ministered to them 
their certain or stated time, and are called to go and 
serve other churches, they send them forth in a manner 
worthy of God, making a reasonable provision for the 
journey which they are obliged to take. In the itine- 
rant ministry of the apostles, it appears that each church 
bore the expenses of the apostle to the next church, or 
district, to which he was going to preach the word of 
life. So it should be still in the mission and itinerant 
ministry. 

I have seen many aged and worn-out ministers re- 
duced to great necessity, and almost literally obliged to 
beg their bread among those whose opulence and salva- 
tion were, under God, the fruits of their ministry ! Such 
persons may think they do God service by disputing 
" tithes, as legal institutions- long since abrogated," 
while they permit their worn-out ministers to starve : 
but how shall they appear in that day when Jesus shall 
say, "I was hungry, and ye gave me no meat ; thirsty, 



332 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

and ye gave me no drink; naked, and ye clothed me 
not?" 

The religion that costs us nothing, is to us worth 
nothing. 

It is the privilege of the churches of Christ to support 
the ministry of his gospel among them. Those who do 
not contribute their part to the support of the gospel 
ministry either care nothing for it, or derive no good 
from it. 

Nothing can be more reasonable than to devote a por- 
tion of the earthly good which we receive from the free 
mercy of God, to his own service ; especially when by 
doing it we are essentially serving ourselves. If the 
ministers of God give up their whole time, talents, and 
strength, to watch over, labour for, and instruct the 
people in spiritual things, justice requires that they shall 
receive their support from the work. How worthless 
and wicked must that man be who is continually receiv- 
ing good from the Lord's hands without restoring any 
part for the support of true religion and for charitable 
purposes ! To such God says, " Their table shall become 
a snare to them," and that he will curse their blessings. 
God expects returns of gratitude in this way from every 
man ; he that has much should give plenteously ; he that 
has little should do his diligence to give of that little. 

It is an honour to be permitted to do any thing for 
the support of public worship ; and he must have a 
strange, unfeeling, ungodly heart, who does not esteem 
it a high privilege to have a stone of his own laying or 
procuring in the house of God. How easily might all 
the buildings necessary for the purpose of public wor- 
ship be raised, if the money that is spent in needless 
self-indulgence by ourselves, our sons, and our daughters, 
were devoted to this purpose! By sacrifices of thh 
kind the house of the Lord would be soon built, and the 
«* top stone brought on with shouting, Grace, grace unto 
it!" 

Though I had been almost exhausted with my yester- 
day's work, yet they insisted on my preaching at Lis- 
burne at eleven, as it was their quarterly meeting. In 
vain I urged and expostulated. They said, " Surely, you 
came out to preach, and why should you not preach at 
every opportunity ?" " I must rest." "Surely, you 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 333 

can rest after preaching !" I replied, " I must preach 
to-morrow at Lurgan, and shall have but little time to 
rest." " O, the more you preach, the more strength 
you will get." " I came out for the sake of health and 
rest." " O, rest when you return home." " I cannot 
rest at home, as I have got more work to do there than 
lean manage." " Then," said they, " you shall get rest 
in the grave." I give this specimen of the inconsider- 
ateness and unfeelingness of many religious people, who 
care little how soon their ministers are worn out ; be- 
cause they find their excessive labours comfortable to 
their own minds ; and should the preacher die through 
his extraordinary exertions, they have this consolation, 
" God can soon raise up another." 

No teacher should be exalted above, or opposed to, 
another. As the eye could not say to the hand, "I have 
no need of thee ;" so, luminous Apollos could not say to 
laborious Paul, "I can build-up and preserve the church 
without thee." As the foot planted on the ground to 
support the whole fabric; and as the hands which swing 
at liberty; and as the eye that is continually taking in 
near and distant objects, are all necessary to the whole, 
and mutually helpful to and dependant on each other; 
so also are the different ministers and members of the 
church of Christ. 

The doctrine and teacher most prized and followed 
by worldly men, and by the gay, giddy, and garish mul- 
titude, are not from God ; they savour of the flesh, lay 
on no restraints, prescribe no cross-bearing, and leave 
every one in full possession of his heart's lusts and easily 
besetting sins. And by this, false doctrine and false 
teachers are easily discerned. 

Happy they who, on hearing of the salvation of Christ, 
immediately attach themselves to its Author ! Delays 
are always dangerous ; and, in this case, often fatal. 
Reader ! hast thou ever had Christ as a sacrifice for thy 
sin pointed out unto thee? If so, hast thou followed 
him ? If not, thou art not in the way to the kingdom of 
God. Lose not another moment ! Eternity is at hand ! 
and thou art not prepared to meet thy God. Pray that 
he may alarm thy conscience, and stir up thy soul to 
seek till thou hast found. 

If thou art seriously inquiring where Christ dwelleth. 



334 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

take the following for an answer: He dwells not in the 
tumult of worldly affairs, nor in profane assemblies, nor 
in worldly pleasures, nor in the place where drunkards 
proclaim their shame, nor in carelessness and idleness. 
But he is found in his temple, where two or three are 
gathered together in his name, in secret prayer, in self- 
denial, in fasting, in self-examination. He also dwells 
in the humble, contrite spirit, in the spirit of faith, of 
love, of forgiveness, of universal obedience : in a word, 
he dwells in the heaven of heavens, whither he gra- 
ciously purposes to bring thee, if thou wilt come and 
learn of him, and receive the salvation which he has 
bought for thee with his own blood. 

The church or chapel in w r hich the blind and lame 
are not healed has no Christ in it, and is not worthy of 
attendance. 

Those who come, under the influence of God's Spirit, 
to places of public worship, will undoubtedly meet with 
Him who is the comfort and salvation of Israel. 

The soul that relishes God's word is ever growing in 
grace by it. 

Those who suppose themselves to excel all others in 
piety, understanding, &c, while they are harsh, censo- 
rious, and overbearing, prove that they have not the 
charity that " thinketh no evil ;" and in the sight of God 
are only " as sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal." 
There are no people more censorious or uncharitable 
than those among some religious people who pretend 
to more light and a deeper communion with God. They 
are generally carried away with a sort of sublime high- 
sounding phraseology, which seems to argue a wonder- 
fully deep acquaintance with divine things : stripped of 
this, many of them are like Samson without his hair. 

The mere preaching of the gospel has done much to 
convince and convert sinners ; but the lives of the sin- 
cere followers of Christ, as illustrative of the truth of 
these doctrines, have done much more. Truth repre- 
sented in action seems to assume a body, and thus ren- 
ders itself palpable. In heathen countries, which are 
under the dominion of Christian pow r ers, the gospel, 
though established there, does little good, because of the 
profane and irreligious lives of those who profess it. 
Why has not the whole peninsula of India been long 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 335 

since evangelized ? The gospel has been preached 
there ; but the lives of the Europeans professing Chris- 
tianity there have been, in general, profligate, sordid, 
and base. From them sounded out no good report of 
the gospel ; and therefore the Mohammedans continue 
to prefer their Koran, and the Hindoos their Yedas and 
Shasters, to the Bible. 

Do not suppose that ye have no need of continual in- 
struction ;. without it ye cannot preserve the Christian 
life, nor go on to perfection. God will ever send a mes 
sage of salvation by each of his ministers to every faith- 
ful, attentive hearer. Do not suppose that ye are already 
wise enough ; you are no more wise enough than you 
are holy enough ; they who slight or neglect the means 
of grace, and especially the preaching of God's holy 
word, are generally vain, empty, self-conceited people, 
and exceedingly superficial both in knowledge and 
piety. 

"Ever learning, and never able to come to the know 
ledge of the truth." There are many professors of 
Christianity still who answer the above description. 
They hear, repeatedly hear, it may be, good sermons ; 
but, as they seldom meditate on what they hear, they 
derive little profit from the ordinances of God. They 
have no more grace now than they had several years 
ago, though hearing all the while, and perhaps not wick- 
edly departing from the Lord. They do not meditate, 
they do not, think, they do not reduce what they hear to 
practice ; therefore, even under the preaching of an 
apostle, they could not become wise to salvation. 

Should the most nutritive aliment be received into 
the stomach, if not mixed with the above juices, it 
would be rather the means of death than of life ; or, 
in the words of the apostle, it would not profit, because 
not thus mixed. Faith in the word preached, in refer- 
ence to that God who sent it, is the grand means of its 
becoming the power of God to the salvation of the souh 
It is not likely that he who does not credit a threaten- 
ing when he comes to hear it, will be deterred by it 
from repeating the sin against which it is levelled ; nor 
can he derive comfort from a promise who does not be- 
lieve it as a pledge of God's veracity and goodness. 
Faith, therefore, must be mixed with all that we hear, 



u'36 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE, 

in order to make the word of God effectual to our sal- 
vation. 

The seed of the kingdom can never produce much 
fruit in any heart till the thorns and thistles of vicious 
affections and impure desires be plucked up by the roots 
and burned. 

It is very difficult to get a worldly minded and self- 
righteous man brought to Christ. Examples signify 
little to him. Urge the example of an eminent saint, he 
is discouraged at it. Show him a profligate sinner con- 
verted to God, him he is ashamed to own and follow ; 
and as to the conduct of the generality of the followers 
of Christ, it is not striking enough to impress him. 

How many of those who are called Christians suffer 
the kingdom, the graces, and the salvation which they 
had in their hands to be lost ; while West India ne- 
groes, American Indians, Hindoo Polytheists, and athe- 
istic Hottentots obtain salvation. 

Many, after having done their duty, as they call it, in 
attending a place of worship, forget the errand that 
brought them thither, and spend their time, on their 
return, rather in idle conversation than in reading or 
conversing about the word of God. It is no wonder 
that such should be always "learning, and never able to 
come to a knowledge of the truth." 

It is not, therefore, the nation, kindred, profession, 
mode or form of worship, that the just God regards ; 
but the character, the state of heart, and the moral deport- 
ment. For what are professions, &c, in the sight of 
that God who t.rieth spirits, and by whom actions are 
weighed ! He looks for the grace he has given, the ad- 
vantages he has afforded, and the improvement of all 
these. Let it be observed farther, that no man can be 
accepted with this just God who does not live up to the 
advantages of the state in which Providence has placed 
him. 

It is possible for a man to credit the four evangelists, 
and yet live and die an infidel, as far as his own salva-. 
tion is concerned. 

God says to the swearer and the profane, " Thou 
shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain ;" 
and yet common swearing and profaneness are most 
scandalously common among multitudes who bear the 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 337 

Christian name, and who presume on the mercy of God 
to get at last to the kingdom of heaven ! He says also, 
"Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy; thou 
shalt not kill ; thou shalt not commit adultery ; thou 
shalt not steal ; thou shalt not bear false witness ; thou 
shalt not covet ;" and sanctions all these commandments 
with the most awful penalties : and yet with all these 
things before them, and the professed belief that they 
came from God, Sabbath-breakers, men-slayers, adulter- 
ers, fornicators, thieves, dishonest men, false witnesses, 
liars, slanderers, backbiters, covetous men, "lovers of 
the w^orld more than lovers of God," are found by hun- 
dreds and thousands ! What were the crimes of the 
poor half-blind Egyptian king, when compared with 
these ? He sinned against a comparatively " unknown 
God ;" these sin against the God of their fathers — against 
the God and Father of Him whom they call their Lord 
and Saviour, Jesus Christ ! They sin with the Bible in 
their hand, and a conviction of its divine authority in 
their hearts. They sin against light and knowledge ; 
against the checks of their consciences, the reproofs of 
their friends, the admonitions of the messengers of God ; 
against Moses and Aaron in the law ; against the testi- 
mony of all the prophets ; against the evangelists, the 
apostles, the Maker of heaven and earth, the Judge of 
all men, and the Saviour of the world ! What were 
Pharaoh's crimes to the crimes of these ? On compari- 
son, his atom of moral turpitude is lost in their world of 
iniquity. And yet who supposes these to be under any 
necessitating decree to sin on, and go to perdition ? Nor 
are they ; nor was Pharaoh. In all things God has 
proved both his justice and mercy to be clear in this point. 

I shall now take the liberty of giving you a few 
directions how to hear the word profitably. 

Endeavour to get your minds deeply impressed with 
the value of God's word. 

If possible, get a few minutes for private prayer before 
you go to the house of God, that you may supplicate 
his throne for a blessing on your own soul, and on the 
congregation. 

When you get to the chapel, consider it as the house 
of God, the dwelling place of the Most High ; that he 
is there to bless his people ; and that you cannot please 

15 



333 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 

him better than by being willing to receive the abundant 
mercies which he is ready to communicate. 

Mingle all your hearing with prayer. 

Hear with faiih. Receive the Scriptures as the words 
of God. 

Receive the preacher as the ambassador of God, sent 
particularly to you with a message of salvation. Listen 
attentively to every part of the sermon ; there is a por- 
tion for yon somewhere in it : hear all, and you are 
sure to discern what belongs to yourself. 

Do not suppose that you know even all the outlines 
of the plan of salvation. There is a height, length, 
breadth, and depth in the things of God, of which you 
have as yet bat a very inadequate conception. 

Do not think that this or the other preacher cannot 
instruct you. He may be, comparatively speaking, a 
weak preacher ; but the meanest servant of God's send- 
ing will at all times be directed to bring something to 
the wisest and holiest Christians which they have not 
fully known or enjoyed before. 

Never absent yourself from the house of God when 
you can possibly attend. 

Consider how great the blessing is which you enjoy ! 
"What would a damned soul give for the privilege of sit- 
ting five minutes in your place, to hear Jesus preached, 
with the same possibility of being saved? 

Do not divide the word with your neighbour ; hear 
for yourself. Share your clothes, money, bread, &c, 
with him, but do not divide the word preached. 

Consider, this may be the last sermon you shall ever 
be permitted to hear. 

That your being blessed does not consist in your 
remembering heads, divisions, <fec, but in feeling the 
divine influence. 

After the sermon is over, get as speedily home as you 
can, and spend a few moments on your knees in private 
prayer. Meditate on what you have heard. 

Pray for your preachers, that God may fill them with 
the unction of his Spirit. 

And, when you read the Holy Scriptures, consider 
that it is God's word which you read, and that his faith- 
fulness is pledged to fulfil both its promises and 
threatenings. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MINISTERS AND PEOPLE. 339 

Read the whole Bible, and read it in order ; two 
chapters in the Old Testament, and one in the New, 
daily, if you can possibly spare time. 

Think that the eye of God is upon you while you are 
reading ; and remember that the word is not sent to 
particular persons, as if by name ; and do not think you 
have no part in it, because you are not named there. It 
is not thus sent : it is addressed to particular characters ; 
to saints, sinners, the worldly minded, the proud, &c. 
Therefore, examine your own state, and see to which 
of these characters you belong, and then apply the word 
spoken to the character in question to yourself; for it 
is as surely spoken to you as if your name were found 
printed in the Bible, and placed there by divine inspira- 
tion itself. 

When you meet with a threatening, and know, from 
your own state, that this awful word is spoken against 
you, stop, and implore God, for the sake of the suffer- 
ings and death of his Son, to pardon the sin that exposes 
you to the punishment threatened. When you meet 
with a promise made to the penitent, tempted, afflicted, 
&c, having found out your own case, stop, and implore 
God to fulfil that promise. 

Should you find, on examination, that the threatening 
has been averted by your having turned to God ; that 
the promise has been fulfilled through your faith in 
Christ ; stop here also, and return God thanks. Thus 
you will constantly find matter, in reading the book of 
God, to excite repentance, to exercise faith, to produce 
confidence and consolation, and to beget gratitude ; and 
gratitude will never fail to beget obedience. 

It is always useful to read a portion of the Scriptures 
before prayer, whether performed in the family or in 
the closet. 

Keep the eye of your mind steadily fixed upon Him 
who is the end of the law, and the sum of the gospel. 

Let the Scriptures, therefore, lead you to that Holy 
Spirit by which they were inspired ; let that Spirit lead 
you to Jesus Christ, who has ransomed you by his 
death. And let this Christ lead you to the Father, that 
he may adopt you into the family of heaven ; and thus, 
being taught of him, justified by his blood, and sancti- 
fied by his Spirit, you shall be saved with all the power 
of an endless life. 



340 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY—GOOD AND BAD ANGELS, 



XXVL— GOOD AND BAD ANGELS. 

Good Angels. — Our word "angel" comes from the 
Greek angelos, which literally signifies " a messenger," 
or, as translated in some of our old Bibles, "a tidings- 
bringer." It is applied indifferently to a human agent 
or messenger, 2 Sam. ii, 5 ; to a prophet, Haggai i, 13 ; 
to a priest, Mai. ii, 7; to celestial spirits, Psalm ciii, 
19, 20, 22 ; civ. 4. 

The doctrine of the ministration of angels has been 
much abused, not only among the heathens, but also 
among Jews and Christians, and most among the latter. 
Angels, with feigned names, titles, and influences, have 
been and still are invoked and worshipped by a certain 
class of men, because they have found that God has been 
pleased to employ them to minister to mankind ; and 
hence they have made supplications to them to extend 
their protection, to shield, defend, instruct, &c. This 
is perfectly absurd. 1. They are God's instruments, 
not self-determining agents. 2. They can only do what 
they are appointed to perform, for there is no evidence 
that they have any discretionary power. 3. God helps 
man by ten thousand means and instruments ; some 
intellectual, as angels ; some rational, as men ; some 
irrational, as brutes ; and some merely material, as the 
sun, wind, rain, food, raiment, and the various produce 
tions of the earth. He therefore helps by whom he 
will help, and to him alone belongs all the glory ; for, 
should he be determined to destroy, all these instruments 
collectively could not save. Instead, therefore, of wor- 
shipping them, we should take their own advice : " See 
thou do it not ; worship God." 

Evil spirits may attempt to injure thee ; but they shall 
not be able. The angels of God shall have an especial 
charge to accompany, defend, and preserve thee ; and 
against their power the influence of evil spirits cannot 
prevail. These will, when necessary, turn thy steps 
out of the way of danger ; ward it off when it comes in 
thy ordinary path ; suggest to thy mind prudent coun- 
sels, profitable designs, and pious purposes ; and thus 
minister to thee as a child of God and an heir of 
salvation. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — GOOD AND BAD ANGELS. 341 

Previously to our Lord's ascension to heaven, these 
holy beings could have little knowledge of the neces- 
sity, reasons, and economy of human salvation, nor of 
the nature of Christ as God and man. St. Peter informs 
us that the angels desire to look into these things, 
1 Pet. i, 12. And St. Paul says the same thing, Eph. 
iii, 9, 10, when speaking of the revelation of the gospel 
plan of salvation, which he calls " the mystery which 
from the beginning of the world had been hid in God ;" 
and which was now published, that " unto the princi- 
palities and powers in heavenly places might be made 
known by the church the manifold wisdom of God." 
Even those angelic beings have got an accession to 
their blessedness by an increase of knowledge in the 
things which concern Jesus Christ, and the whole 
scheme of human salvation, through his incarnation, 
passion, death, resurrection, ascension, and glorification. 

Bad Angels. — There are many demons mentioned 
in Scripture ; but the word Satan, or devil, is never 
found in the originals of the Old and New Testaments 
in the plural number. Hence we reasonably infer that 
all evil spirits are under the government of one chief, 
the devil, who is more powerful and more wicked 
than the rest. From the Greek 6ca(3o?,oc comes the Latin 
diabolus, the Spanish diablo, the French diable, the 
Italian diavolo, the German teuffel, the Dutch duivel, 
the Anglo-Saxon deovle, and the English devil, which 
some would derive from "the evil;' 1 the evil one, or 
wicked one. 

I have remarked, among the simple, honest inhabit- 
ants of the counties of Antrim and Londonderry, in Ire- 
land, that the common name for the devil or Satan was 
" the sorrow ;" a good sense of the original word, — 
" the wicked one, the evil one, the sorrow ;" he who is 
miserable himself, and whose aim is to make all 
others so. 

It is now fashionable to deny the existence of this 
evil spirit; and this is one of what St. John, Rev. ii, 24, 
calls " the depths of Satan ;" as he well knows that 
they who deny his being will not be afraid of his power 
and influence ; will not watch against his wiles and 
devices ; will not pray to God for deliverance from the 



342 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY GOOD AND BAD ANGELS. 

evil one ; will not expect him to be trampled down under 
their feet, who has no existence ; and, consequently, 
they will become an easy and unopposing prey to the 
enemy of their souls. By leading men to disbelieve 
and deny his existence, he throws th3m off their guard, 
and is then their complete master, and they are led 
captive by him at his will. It is well known that, 
among all those who make any profession of religion, 
those who deny the existence of the devil are they who 
pray little or none at all; and are, apparently, as care- 
less about the existence of God, as they are about the 
being of a devil. Piety to God is with them out of the 
question; for those who do not pray, especially in pri- 
vate, (and I never met with a devil-denier who did,) 
have no religion of any kind, whatsoever pretensions 
they may choose to make. 

Those who deny the existence of Satan are generally 
men of desperate characters and desperate fortunes ; 
and, as they will not listen to the voice of reason, nor 
to the sacred oracles, they must be left to their own 
desperation. 

Because men cannot see as far as the Spirit of God 
does, therefore they deny his testimony. " There was 
no devil ; there can be none." Why ? " Because we 
have never seen one, and we think the doctrine absurd." 
Excellent reason ! And do you think that any man 
who conscientiously believes his Bible will give any 
credit to you ? Men sent from God, to bear witness to 
the truth, tell us there were demoniacs in their time ; 
you say, " No ; they were only diseases." Whom shall 
we credit ? the men sent from God, or you ? 

Is the doctrine of demoniacal influence false ? If so, 
Jesus took the most direct method to perpetuate the 
belief of that falsity by accommodating himself so com- 
pletely to the deceived vulgar. But this was impossible ; 
therefore the doctrine of demoniacal influence is a true 
doctrine, otherwise Christ would never have given it 
the least countenance or support. 

God has often permitted demons to act on and in the 
bodies of men and women ; and it is not improbable 
that the principal part of unaccountable and inexplicable 
disorders still come from the same source. 

Satan was once in the truth, in righteous ? c£ 5 and 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY GOOD Ai\D BAD ANGELS. 343 

true holiness ; and he fell from that truth into sin and 
falsehood, so that he became the father of- lies, and the 
first murderer. 

God, in his endless mercy, has put enmity between 
mien and Saran ; so that, though all mankind love his 
service, yet all invariably hate himself. Were it other- 
wise, who could be saved ? A great point gained toward 
the conversion of a sinner is, to convince him that if is 
Satan he has been serving ; that it is to him he has been 
giving up his soul, body, goods, &-c. He starts with 
horror when this conviction fastens on his mind, and 
shudders at the thought of being in league with the old 
murderer. 

It is very seldom that God permits Satan to waste the 
substance, or afflict the body, of any man ; but at all 
times this malevolent spirit may have access to the mind 
of any man, and inject doubts, fears, diffidence, per- 
plexities, and even unbelief. And here is the spiritual 
conflict. Now, their wrestling is not with flesh and 
blood, with men like themselves, nor about secular 
affairs; but they have to contend with angels, principa- 
lities, and powers, and the rulers of the darkness of this 
world, and spiritual wickednesses in high places. In 
such cases Satan is often permitted to diffuse darkness 
into the understanding, and envelope the heavens with 
clouds. Hence are engendered false views of God and 
his providence; of men and of the spiritual world; and 
particularly of the person's own state and circumstances. 
Every thing is distorted, and all seen through a false 
medium. Indescribable distractions and uneasiness are 
hereby induced. The mind is like a troubled sea, tossed 
by a tempest that seems to confound both heaven and 
earth. Strong temptations to things which the soul 
contemplates with abhorrence are injected, and which 
are followed by immediate accusations, as if the injec- 
tions were the offspring of the heart itself; and the 
trouble and dismay produced are represented as the 
sense of guilt from a consciousness of having in heart 
committed these evils. Thus Satan tempts, accuses, and 
upbraids, in order to perplex the soul, induce skepticism, 
and destroy the empire of faith. Behold here the per- 
mission of God ; and behold also his sovereign control : 
all this time the grand tempter is not permitted to touch 



3-14 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY GOOD AND BAD ANGELS. 

the heart, the seat of the affections ; nor to do even the 
slightest violence to the will. The soul is cast down, 
but not destroyed ; perplexed, but not in despair. It is 
on all sides harassed : without are lighting ; within are 
fears; but the will is inflexible on the siue of God and 
truth, and the heart, with all its train of affections and 
passions, follows it. The man does not wickedly depar 
from his God ; the outworks are violently assailed, but 
not taken ; the city is still safe, and the citadel impreg- 
nable. Heaviness may endure for the night, but joy 
cometh in the morning. Jesus is seen walking upon 
the waters. He speaks peace to the winds and the sea; 
immediately there is a calm. Satan is bruised down 
under the feet of the sufferer ; the clouds are dispersed ; 
the heavens reappear ; and the soul, to its surprise, finds 
that the storm, instead of hindering, has driven it nearer 
the haven whither it should be. 

Satan's ordinary method in temptation is to excite 
strongly to sin, to blind the understanding and inflame 
the passions ; and when he succeeds, he triumphs by 
insults and reproaches. No one so ready then to tell 
the poor soul how deeply, disgracefully, and ungrate- 
fully it has sinned ! Reader, take heed ! 

A part of Job's sufferings probably arose from appal- 
ling representations made to his eye, or to his imagina- 
tion, by Satan and his agents : I think this neither irra- 
tional nor improbable. That he and his demons have 
power to make themselves manifest on especial occa- 
sions, has been credited in all ages of the world; not 
by the weak, credulous, and superstitious only, but also 
by the wisest, the most learned, and the best of men. 
I am persuaded that many passages in the book of Job 
refer to this ; and admit of an easy interpretation on 
this ground. 

Satan, who works in the heart of the children of dis- 
obedience, possesses himself of the corrupt nature of 
man, oroduces bad motives in a bad heart, blinds the 
understanding, excites irregular appetites, and thence 
bad tempers, evil words, and unholy actions. 

Satan is ever going about as a roaring lion seeking 
whom he may devour ; in order to succeed, he blinds 
the understanding of sinners, and then finds it an easy 
matter to tumble them into the pit of perdition. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — GOOD AND BAD ANGELS. 345 

What a wide-wasting- wo and evil is one sinner ! He 
spreads desolation and death wherever he comes. Satan 
drives, and he runs ; or, spontaneous with the tempter, 
he is led caDtive by him at his will. By the instrumen- 
tality of one wicked man Satan can do ten thousand 
times more evil than he can in his own person. He 
deceiveth the world, waters the infernal seed, and power- 
fully works in the hearts of the children of disobedi- 
ence. What a dishonour to be a servant, and much 
more to be a slave, of the devil ! O why do not sinners 
lay this to heart ! 

Satan takes advantage of our natural temper, state 
of health, and outward circumstances, to plague and ruin 
our souls. 

An unholy spirit is the only place where Satan can 
have his full operation, and show forth the plenitude of 
his destroying power. 

Neither the devil nor his servants ever speak truth 
but when they expect to accomplish some bad purpose 
by it. 

Satan makes himself master of the heart, the eyes, 
and the tongue of the sinner. His heart he fills with the 
love of sin ; his eyes he blinds, that he may not see his 
guilt and the perdition that awaits him ; and his tongue 
he hinders from prayer and supplication, though he 
gives it increasing liberty in blasphemies, lies, slanders, 
&c. None but Jesus can redeem from this threefold 
captivity. 

After having sown his seed, Satan disappears. Did he 
appear as himself, i'ew would receive solicitation to sin ; 
but he is seldom discovered in evil thoughts. 

Satan has a shoot of iniquity for every shoot of grace ■ 
and when God revives his work, Satan revives his also. 
No marvel, therefore, if we find scandals arising suddenly 
to discredit a work of grace where God has begun to 
pour out his Spirit. 

It is the interest of Satan to introduce hypocrites 
and wicked persons into religious societies, in order to 
discredit the work of God, and to favour his own 
designs. 

Men, through sin, are become the very house and 
dwelling place of Satan, having, of their own accord, 
surrendered themselves to this unjust possessor ; for, 
15* 



346 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY GOOD AND BAD ANGELS. 

whoever gives up his soul to sin gives it up to the devil 
It is Jesus, and Jesus alone, who can deliver from the 
power of this bondage. When Satan is cast out, Jesus 
purifies and dwells in the heart. 

Since a demon cannot enter even into a swine without 
being sent by God himself, how little is the power or 
malice of any of them to be dreaded by those who have 
God for their portion and protection. 

The devil himself has his chains ; and he who often 
binds others is always bound himself. 

A man must consent to sin before he can sin. God 
has so constituted the human will that it cannot be 
forced. Satan may present false images to the imagi- 
nation, darken the mind, and confound the memory ; 
'but he cannot force the will. He may flatter, sooth, 
and promise pleasure in order to gain over the will, 
but before he can ruin us he must have our consent. 
Were the case otherwise, we could not possibly be 
saved. 

Satan is never permitted to block up our way without 
the providence of God making a way through the wall. 
God ever makes a breach in his otherwise impregnable 
fortification. Should an upright soul get into difficul- 
ties and straits, he may rest assured that there is a way 
out as there was a way in ; and that the trial shall 
never be above the strength that God shall give him to 
bear it. 

The devil cannot conquer you if you continue to resist. 
Strong as he is, God never permits him to conquer the 
man who continues io resist him. He cannot force the 
human will. He who in the terrible name of Jesus 
opposes even the devil himself, is sure to have a speedy 
and glorious conquest. He flees from that name, and 
from his conquering blood. 

Be vigilant : awake and keep awake ; be always watch- 
ful ; never be off your guard ; your enemies are alert, 
they are never off theirs. Your "adversary the devil:" 
This is a reason why ye should be sober and vigilant : 
ye have an ever active, implacable, subtle enemy to 
contend with. He " walketh about:" — He has access 
to you everywhere : he knows your feelings and your 
propensities, and informs himself of all your circum- 
stances ; only God can know more and do more than 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — TEMPTATIONS. 347 

he, therefore your care must be cast upon God. As 
a " roaring Hon :" — Satan tempts under three forms : 
1. The subtle serpent; to beguile our senses, pervert 
our judgment, and enchant our imagination. 2. As an 
angel of light ; to allure us with false views of spiritual 
things, refinement in religion, and presumption on the 
providence and grace of God. 3. As a roaring lion ; to 
beat us down, and destroy us by violent opposition, 
persecution, and death. 

What a comfortable thought it is to the followers of 
Christ, that neither men nor demons can act against 
them but by the permission of their heavenly Father ; 
and that he will not suffer any of those who trust in him 
to be tried above what they are able to bear, and will 
make the trial issue in their greater salvation, and in his 
glory ! 

" Every man has his price," was the maxim of a 
great statesman, Sir Robert Walpole. "But you have 
not bought such a one." "No, because I would not 
go up to his price. He valued himself at more than 
I thought him worth, and I could get others cheaper, 
who, in the general muster, would do as well !" No 
doubt Sir R. met with many such ; and the devil, many 
more. But still God has multitudes that will neither 
sell their souls, their consciences, nor their, country, for 
any price ; who, though God should slay them; will 
nevertheless trust in him, and be honest men, howso- 
ever tempted by the devil and his vicegerents : so did 
Job ; so have thousands ; so will ail do, in whose hearts 
Christ dwells by faith. 



XXVII.— TEMPTATIONS. 

The process of temptation is often as follows : — 1. A 
simple evil thought. 2. A strong imagination, or im- 
pression made on the imagination by the thing to which 
we are tempted. 3. Delight in viewing it. 4. Consent 
of the will to perform it. Thus lust is conceived, sin is 
finished, and death brought forth. 

Temptation is a part of our Christian warfare ; and 
Jesus, our Lord and pattern, was tempted, and sorely 
tempted too ; and has, by his temptation, showed us 



348 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY— TEMPTATIONS. 

how we may foil our adversary, and glorify our God in 
the day of such a visitation. 

And man may be tempted, and be in a state of temp- 
tation, without entering into it: "entering into it" im- 
plies giving way, closing in with, and embracing it. 
That man has entered into a temptation who feels his 
heart inclined to it, and would act accordingly, did time, 
place, and opportunity serve. Christ was tempted even 
to worship the devil ; but he entered not into any of 
the temptations of his adversary: the prince of* this 
world came and found nothing in him, no evil nature 
within to join with the evil temptation without. Now 
a man may be on the verge of falling by some powerful 
and well circumstanced sin, — he may be in it ; but the 
timely help of God may succour him, and prevent him 
from entering into it ; and thus a brand is plucked from 
the burning. He was heated, yea, scorched by it, but 
was saved from the desolating and ruinous act. 

The temptation that leads us astray may be as sudden 
as it is successful. We may lose in one moment the 
fruit of a whole life ! How frequently is this the case, 
and how few lay it to heart ! A man may fall by the 
means of his understanding, as well as by the means of 
his passions. 

Ye have many enemies, cunning and strong ; many 
trials, too great for your natural strength ; many temp- 
tations, which no human power is able successfully to 
resist ; many duties to perform, which cannot be accom- 
plished by the strength of man ; therefore you need 
divine strength ; ye must have might ; and ye must be 
strengthened everywhere, and every way fortified by 
that might ; mightily and most effectually strengthened. 

To know when to fight, and when to fly, is of great 
importance in the Christian life. Some temptation? 
must be manfully met, resisted, and thus overcome ; 
from others we must fly. He who stands to contend or 
reason, especially in such a case as that mentioned here, 
is infallibly ruined. Principiis obsta, " resist the first 
overtures of sin," is a good maxim. After remedies come 
too late. 

No man, howsoever holy, is exempted from tempta- 
tion ; for God manifested in the flesh was tempted by 
the devil. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY TEMPTATIONS, 349 

To be tempted even to the greatest abominations, 
(while a person resists,) is not sin; for Christ was 
tempted to worship the devil. 

The state of our bodily health and worldly circum- 
stances may afford our adversary many opportunities of 
doing us immense mischief. 

We must shut our senses against dangerous objects, to 
avoid the occasion of sin. There is no temptation which 
is from its own nature, or favouring circumstances, irre- 
sistible. God has promised to bruise even Satan under 
our feet. 

The fear of being tempted may become a most dan- 
gerous snare. Men often part with some member of the 
body, at the discretion of a surgeon, that they may 
preserve the trunk, and die a little later ; and yet they 
will not deprive themselves of a look, a touch, a 
small pleasure, which endanger the eternal death of the 
soul. 

Human strength and human weakness are only names 
in religion. The mightiest man, in the hour of trial, 
can do nothing without the strength of God; and the 
weakest woman can do all things, if Christ strengthen 
her. 

Do not yield to temptation. It is no sin to be tempt- 
ea 1 ; the sin lies in yielding. While the sin exists only 
in Satan's solicitation, it is the devil's sin, not ours : 
when we yield, we make the devil's sin our own ; 
then we enter into temptation. 

We should be on our guard against what are called 
little sins, and all occasions and excitements to sin. 
Take heed what company you frequent. One thing 
apparently harmless may lead by almost imperceptible 
links to sins of the deepest die. 

The best way to foil the adversary is by the sword of 
the Spirit, which is the word of God. 

He who, through the grace of God, resists and over- 
comes temptation, is always bettered by it. 

A more than ordinary measure of divine consolation 
shall be the consequence of every victory. 

Perhaps nothing tends so much to discover what we 
are, as trials either from men or devils. 

The trials, disappointments, insults, and wants of the 
followers of Christ become, in the hand of the all-wise 



350 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGV— AFFLICTIONS. 

God, subservient to their best interests: hence nothina 
can happen to them without their deriving profit from 
it, unless it be their own Fault. 

The advantage of trials is to make us know our weak- 
ness, so as to oblige us to have recourse to God by faith 
in Christ. 

Trials put religion and all the graces of which it is 
composed to proof; the man that stands in such trials 
gives proof that his religion is sound, and the evidence 
afforded to his own mind induces him to take courage, 
bear patiently, and persevere. 

XXVIIL— AFFLICTIONS. 

All men in the present life must be frequently in 
danger, necessity, and tribulation : dangers from which 
they cannot by their own strength or wisdom escape : 
necessities which no prudence or providence of theirs 
can supply : and tribulations through which it will be 
impossible for them to pass, unless they have divine 
help, both in the water and in the fire. 

The labours of the day in several of the avocations of 
life are performed in perilous situations. Mining, in 
which hundreds of thousands are employed, is a tissue 
of dangers ; in every moment life is exposed to imminent 
and various deaths, by what is called the fire damp, and 
the falling of parts of the pit on the miners. Those 
who travel by land or by water are not less exposed. 
By common stage coaches, accidents are riot only fre- 
quent, but often mortal : weekly accounts from public 
registers are full of details of such calamitous events. 
Those who travel by water are yet more exposed than 
those who travel by land. On sea, there is never more 
than a few inches of plank between any man and death. 
In a sudden squall, a ship may easily founder ; in a 
gale blowing on a lee shore, she may soon be dashed 
to pieces, and every hand lost. A ship may spring a 
leak which no industry or skill may be able to stop ; 
and, after incredible labour of the crew, fill and go to the 
bottom, and every person be consigned to a watery 
grave. In cases where the weather has been dark and 
tempestuous for several days, so that no observation 
could be taken, and the reckoning, because of the con- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY AFFLICTIONS. 351 

Aiding and thwarting tides, has been necessarily imper- 
fect ; in a hazy state of the atmosphere the ship may 
make land in a breeze or gale, either by night or day, 
and be suddenly dashed in pieces: some of these peril- 
ous states I have witnessed. Beside these, there is a 
multitude of other dangers which unavoidably accom- 
pany a sea-faring life ; and which, in numerous cases, 
are destructive of human life : what need of an almighty 
Preserver ! 

I have known persons, in endeavouring to run out of 
the way of carts and coaches, actually run into the way 
of danger. I have known one who, walking along the 
parapet, was crushed to pieces by a cart wheel against 
the wall. I have seen a woman striving to see the raree- 
show of an illumination, fall from a garret, and dashed 
to pieces on the pavement. I have seen a man who 
had got too much liquor, riding furiously, — -his horse 
fell, and he was killed on the spot. I have seen another 
who, getting on forbidden ground, was shot dead on the 
spot. I have known another who fell over a bank, and 
was dead before he could be taken up. In short, I have 
known many who ran into various kinds of dangers, and 
have paid for their imprudence, temerity, or what was 
called the " accident," by the loss of their life. In 
crossing the streets of London, or other large cities and 
towns, let us remember the proverb, that " there are 
always two hundred yards more of room behind a coach 
than before it:" of this many are sadly unmindful, and 
run across public streets before horses and carriages 
driving at full trot ; and not a few have either lost life 
or limb by this folly. 

As the religion of Christ gives no quarter to vice, so 
the vicious will give no quarter to this religion, or to its 
professors. 

Can any man who pretends to be a scholar or disciple 
of Jesus Christ expect to be treated well by the worid ? 
Will not the world love its own, and them only ? Why 
then so much impatience under sufferings, such an ex- 
cessive sense of injuries, such delicacy ? Can you 
expect any thing from the world better than you receive ? 
If you want the honour that comes from it, abandon 
Jesus Christ, and it will again receive you into its 
bosom. But you will, no doubt, count the cost before 



3j2 christian theology — AFFLICTIONS. 

you do this. Take the converse, abandon the love of 
the world, &c, and God will receive you. 

If, in order to please a father or brother who is op- 
posed to vital godliness, we abandon God's ordinances 
and followers, we are unworthy of any thing but hell. 

It is no certain proof of the displeasure of God, that 
a whole people, or an individual, may be found in a 
state of great oppression and distress ; nor are affluence 
and prosperity any certain signs of his approbation. 
God certainly loved the Israelites better than he did the 
Egyptians ; yet the former were in the deepest adversity, 
while the latter were in the height of prosperity. 

Though religion is frequently persecuted, and religious 
people suffer at first, where they are not fully known ; 
yet a truly religious and benevolent character will An 
general be prized wherever it is well known. The envy 
of men is a proof of the excellence of that which they 
envy. 

Reader, be thankful to God, who, in pity to thy weak- 
ness, has called thee to believe and enjoy, and not to 
suffer for his sake. It is not for us to covet seasons of 
martyrdom ; we find it difficult to be faithful even in 
ordinary trials ; yet, as offences may come, and times 
of sore trial and proof may occur, we should be prepared 
for them ; and we should know that nothing less than 
Christ in us, the hope of glory, will enable us to stand 
in the cloudy and dark day. Let us, therefore, put on 
the whole armour of God ; and, fighting under the Cap- 
tain of our salvation, expect the speedy destruction of 
every inward foe ; and triumph in the assurance that 
death, the last enemy, will, in his destructions, shortly 
be brought to a perpetual end. Hallelujah ! The Lord 
God Omnipotent reigneth. Amen and Amen. 

Eminent communications of the divine favour prepare 
for, and entitle to, great services and great conflicts. 

Jan. 19th, 1830. — My purpose is to bear the evils 
and calamities of life with less pain of spirit ; if I suffer 
wrong, to leave it to God to right me ; to murmur 
against no dispensation of his providence ; to bear in- 
gratitude and unkindness, as things totally beyond my 
control, and consequently things on account of which 
I should not distress myself; and, though friends and 
confidants should fail, to depend more on my everlasting 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY AFFLICTIONS. 353 

Friend, who never can fail, and to the unkindly treated 
will cause all such things to work together for their 
good. 

It is not likely that God, who has preserved thee so 
long, and fed and supported thee all thy life long, gird- 
ing thee when thou knewest him not, is less willing 
to save and provide for thee and thine now than he was 
when probably thou trustedst less in him. He who made 
and gave his Son to redeem thee, can never be indiffer- 
ent to thy welfare ; and if he gave thee power to pray 
and to trust in him, is it at all likely that he is now seek- 
ing an occasion against thee, in order to destroy thee? 
Add to this, the very light that shows thy wretchedness, 
ingratitude, and disobedience, is, in itself, a proof that 
he is waiting to be gracious to thee ; and the penitential 
pangs thou feelest, and thy bitter regret for thy unfaith- 
fulness, argue that the light and fire are of God's own 
kindling, and are sent to direct and refine, not to drive 
thee out of the way and destroy thee. JNor would he 
have told thee such things of his love, mercy, and kind 
ness, and unwillingness to destroy sinners, as he has 
told thee in his sacred Word, if he had been determined 
not to extend his mercy to thee. 

Many have been humbled under afflictions, and taught 
to know themselves and humble themselves before God, 
that probably without this could have never been saved ; 
after this, they have been serious and faithful. Affliction 
sanctified is a great blessing ; unsancthied, is an addi- 
tional curse. 

Sometimes there is a kind of necessity that the fol- 
lowers of God should be afflicted : when they have no 
trials, they are apt to get careless ; and when they have 
secular prosperity, they are likely to become worldly 
minded. " God," said a good man, " can neither trust 
me with health nor money, therefore I am poor and 
afflicted." But the disciples of Christ may be very 
happy in their souls, though grievously afflicted in their 
bodies and in their estates. 

God may bring his followers into severe straits and 
difficulties, that they may have the better opportunity 
of both knowing and showing their own faith and obe- 
dience ; and that he may seize on those occasions to 
show them the abundance of his mercv, and thus confirm 



354 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — AFFLICTIONS. 

them in righteousness all their days. There is a foolish 
saying among some religions people, which cannot be 
too severely reprobated : " Untried grace is no grace." 
On the contrary, there may be much grace, though 
God, for good reasons, does not think proper for a time 
to put it to any severe trial or proof. But grace is cer- 
tainly not fully known but in being called to trials of 
severe and painful obedience. But as all the gifts of 
God should be used, (and they are increased and 
strengthened by exercise,) it would be unjust to deny 
trials and exercises to grace, as this would be to preclude 
it from the opportunities of being strengthened and 
increased. 

God never permits any tribulation to befall his fol- 
lowers, which he does not design to turn to their 
advantage. When he permits us to hunger, it is that 
his mercy may be the more observable in providing us 
with the necessaries of life. Privations, in the way of 
-providence, are the forerunners of mercy and goodness 
abundant. 

Multitudes, who condemn the conduct of this misera- 
ble Egyptian king, act in a similar manner. They 
relent when smarting under God's judgments, but har- 
den their hearts when these judgments are removed. 
Of this kind I have witnessed numerous cases. To 
such God says by his prophet, " Why should ye be 
stricken any more ? Ye will revolt more and more." 
Reader, are not the vows of God upon thee? Often 
when afflicted in thyself or family, hast thou not said 
like Pharaoh, " Now, therefore, forgive, I pray thee, 
my sin only this once," and "take away" from me " this 
death only?" And yet, when thou hadst respite, didst 
thou not harden thy heart, and, with returning health 
and strength, didst thou not return unto iniquity? And 
art thou not still in the broad road of transgression ? 
" Be not deceived ; God is not mocked :" he warns thee, 
but he will not be mocked by thee. What thou sowest, 
that thou must reap. Think, then, what a most dread- 
ful harvest thou mayest expect from the seeds of vice 
which thou hast already sown ! 

It is not a mark of much grace to be longing to get 
to heaven because of the troubles and difficulties of the 
present life ; they who love Christ are ever willing to 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY AFFLICTIONS. 355 

Buffer with him ; and he may be as much glorified by 
patient suffering, as by the most active faith or laborious 
love. There are times in which, through affliction or 
other hinderances, we cannot do the will of God, but we 
can suffer it ; and in such cases he seeks a heart that 
bears submissively, suffers patiently, and endures, as 
seeing Him who is invisible, without repining or mur- 
muring. This is as full a proof of Christian perfection 
as the most intense and ardent love. Meekness, gentle- 
ness, and long suffering, are in our present state of 
more use to ourselves and others, and of more conse- 
quence in the sight of God, than all the ecstasies of the 
spirits of just men made perfect, and than all the rap- 
tures of an archangel. That church or Christian so- 
ciety, the members of which manifest the work of faith, 
*abour of love, and patience of hope, is most -nearly 
allied to heaven, and is on the suburbs of glory. 

How vain were the attempts of men and devils to 
destroy the light of the gospel by persecution and death ! 
In spite of these it grew ; and under them it flourished ! 
The gates of hell, though opened wide to pour out all 
its hosts, could not prevail against it; and persecution, 
like a good broad-cast sowing, dispersed the seed of 
eternal life throughout the world. The persecuted went 
everywhere preaching the word of the truth of the gos- 
pel : and had not the primitive Christians been burned 
out by persecution at Jerusalem, humanly speaking, it 
would have been a long time before Syria, Asia Minor, 
Greece, and Italy, could have heard the words of eternal 
life ! Satan and his children persecuted and drove them 
from city to city. One company ran, and sowed the 
good seed of the kingdom ; another, driven by the same 
agency, followed after them, and watered the seed ; and 
God continued to reap a "plentiful harvest." Never 
was the wise and experienced devil farther out in his 
calculations than when he counted on the destruction of 
Christianity by fire and sword. Under him the Jews 
distinguished themselves in the first instance, and instead 
of casting down Christianity, they stumbled and fell, and 
rose no more ! Heathen Rome followed in the same 
track ; the sword, the fire, the axe, the gibbet, with the 
fangs and teeth of ferocious beasts, "were tried in vain ; 
and at last, by the power of Christianity, she and her 



356 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — AFFLICTIONS. 

idols, and her instruments of cruelty, were defeated and 
cast down, even down to the ground. Papal Rome, 
having apostatized from the spirit and power of the 
gospel, copied her ancient mother, and most grievously 
persecuted all who held the truth of God against corrupt 
doctrines and the uncertain traditions of men ; but she 
prevailed not ; the secular and spiritual power were con- 
joined to annihilate those who testified against its cor- 
ruptions and its crimes ; and now, that truth which 
entered a solemn protest against those corruptions is 
rapidly spreading over the earth ; and by it more than 
half the world has received that heavenly light concen- 
trated in the Bible, which that church had first obscured 
by false interpretations; and at last violently snatched 
out of the hands of the people. But God has reclaimed 
his own Word, delivered it over to mankind; and they 
who would not walk in the light, but persecuted to 
death those who did, are now consigned to their native 
weakness, darkness, frippery, and folly ; and her secu- 
lar power is cast down for ever : and after ruling the 
earth with her iron sceptre, she has vanished as a power 
fiom the nations of the earth ! Where now is her terror? 
Where now is her fear? and where her respect? The 
mighty angel has taken up the stone, like a " great mill- 
stone," and cast it " into the sea," saying, " Thus with 
violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, 
and shall be found no more at all !" Rejoice over her, 
thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets, for the 
blood of prophets and of saints, and of all that were 
slain upon the earth. While we say, " Alas, alas, for 
this great city!" let us pray that, while her Antichristian 
power is crushed and dissolved, a Christian Rome may 
arise, clothed with the sun, having the moon under her 
feet ; and thus, illustrated with sound doctrine, unspot- 
ted holiness, and useful learning, be once more respect- 
able among the nations, and a blessing to the earth ! 
Amen ! Amen ! 

If men had uninterrupted comforts here, perhaps not 
one soul would seek a preparation for heaven. Human 
trials and afflictions, the general welfare of human life, 
are the highest proof of a providence as benevolent as it 
is wise. Were the state of human affairs different from 
what it is, hell would be more thickly peopled ; and 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — PROVIDENCE. 357 

there would be fewer inhabitants in glory. There is 
reason to doubt whether there would be any religion 
upon earth, had we nothing but temporal prosperity. 



XXIX.— PROVIDENCE. 

That God has general laws by which he governs the 
universe, I am fully aware ; I see them through univer- 
sal nature: and that he has a general providence suited 
to those laws, I equally believe ; but as all generals im- 
ply the particulars of which they are composed, so I 
believe God has his particular laws ; and, suited to them, 
his particular providence, adapted to every occurrence, 
and applicable to all possible varieties of persons, place, 
and circumstance ; that nothing can occur to which he 
cannot adapt a particular influence by which that occur- 
rence shall be so directed, or counteracted, as to prevent 
the evil, and produce the necessary good. 

And should there be no occurrences which appear to 
be under the control of no particular laws, and should 
there be no natural means to meet such occurrences, 
guide their operation, or direct their "mal-influence ; so 
sovereign is he, that without laws and means, he can, 
by the omnific volitions of his own mind, counterwork 
the evil and produce the good. And this he is con- 
stantly doing, in numberless cases, in answer to prayer: 
and, indeed, every answer to prayer is a proof as well 
of this particular and especial providence, as of his 
innate and eternal goodness. 

This providence is not only general, taking in the 
earth and its inhabitants, en masse; giving and esta- 
blishing laws- by which all things shall be governed ; 
but it is also particular; it takes in the multitudes of the 
isles, as well as the vast continents; the different spe- 
cies, as well as the genera ; the individual, as well as the 
family. As every whole is composed of its parts, with- 
out the smallest of which it could not be whole ; so all 
generals are composed of particulars. And by the par- 
ticular providence of God, the general providence is 
formed: he takes care of each individual ; and, therefore, 
he takes care of the whole. Therefore, on the particular 
providence of God the general providence is built. And 
the general providence could not exist without the par- 



358 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PROVIDENCE. 

ticular, any more than a whole could subsist independ- 
ently of its parts. It is by this particular providence 
that God governs the multitude of the isles, notices the 
fall of a sparrow, bottles the tears of the mourner, and 
numbers the hairs of his followers. Now, as God is an 
infinitely wise and good being, and governs the world 
in wisdom and goodness, the earth may well rejoice and 
the multitude of the isles be glad. 

It is granted that this is a subject which cannot be 
comprehended. And why? Because God is infinite: 
he acts from his own counsels, which are infinite, in 
reference to ends which are also infinite ; therefore the 
reasons of his government cannot be comprehended by 
the feeble limited powers of man. 

The providence of God in renewing the wastes of 
nature, and in fructifying barren tracts, so as to make 
the wilderness a fruitful held, and even the steril rocks 
a vegetable surface, is a subject of astonishing beauty 
and contrivance; and as such is worthy of the contem- 
plation of angels and men ; and is a sovereign proof of 
the being and love of the great First Cause and Pre- 
server of all things. 

God disposes and governs the affairs of the universe, 
descending to the minutest particulars, and managing 
the great whole by directing and influencing all its parts. 
This particular or especial providence is not confined 
to work by general laws ; it is wise and intelligent, for 
it is the mind, the will, and energy of God ; it steps out 
of common ways, and takes particular directions, as 
endlessly varied human necessities may need, or the 
establishment and maintenance of godliness in the earth 
may require. 

That divine providence which arranges and conducts 
the whole, and under whose especial guidance and con- 
trol the course of the present state is ordered, so that 
all operations in the natural, civil, and moral world, 
issue in manifesting the glory, justice, and mercy of the 
supreme Being, lies farther out of the view of men, and 
by most is little regarded: hence a multitude of events 
appear to have either no intelligent cause, or no one 
adequate to their production; and because the opera- 
tions of the divine hand are not regarded, historians and 
biographers often disquiet themselves in vain to find out 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY PROVIDENCE. S5"9 

the causes and reasons of the circumstances and trans- 
actions which they record. 

How exactly does every thing in the conduct of 
Providence occur ! and how completely is every thing 
adapted to time, place, and occasion! All is in weight, 
measure, and number. Those simple occurrences which 
men snatch at, and press into the service of their own 
wishes, and call them " providential openings," may in- 
deed be links of a providential chain, in reference to some 
other matters; but unless they be found to speak the 
same language in all their parts, occurrence correspond- 
ing with occurrence, they are not to be construed as 
indications of the divine will in reference to the claim- 
ants. Many persons, through these misapprehensions, 
miscarrying, have been led to charge God foolishly for 
the unsuccessful issue of some business in which their 
passions, not his providence, prompted them to engage. 

Nothing escapes his merciful regards, not even the 
smallest things, of which he may be said to be only the 
Creator and Preserver ; how much less those of whom 
he is the Father, Saviour, and endless Felicity ! 

There is not a circumstance in our life, not an oc- 
currence in our business, but God will make subservient 
to our salvation, if we have a simple heart and teachable 
spirit. 

Nothing is more astonishing than the care and con- 
cern of God for his followers. The least circumstances 
of their life are regulated, not merely by the general 
providence which extends to all things, but by a par- 
ticular providence, which fits and directs all things to 
the design of their salvation, causing them all to co- 
operate for their present and eternal good. 

"If God be for us, who can be against us?" He 
who is infinitely wise has undertaken to direct us : he 
who is infinitely powerful has undertaken to protect us : 
he who is infinitely good has undertaken to save us. 
What cunning, strength, or malice can prevail against 
his wisdom, power, and goodness ? None. Therefore 
we are safe who love God, and not only shall sustain 
no essential damage by the persecutions of ungodly 
men, but even these things work together for our good. 

The person whom Christ terms "happy" is one 
who is not under the influence of fate or chance, but 



360 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY APOSTACY, 

is governed by an all-wise providence, having every 
step directed to the attainment of immortal glory, being 
transformed by the power into the likeness of the ever 
blessed God. 

The belief of an all-wise, all-directing providence, is 
a powerful support under the most grievous accidents 
of life. 

Let man, who is made for God and eternity, learn 
from a flower of the field how low the care of Provi- 
dence stoops. 

It is the property of a wise and tender father to pro- 
vide necessaries, and not superfluities, for his children. 
Not to expect the former is an offence to his goodness ; 
to expect the latter is injurious to his wisdom. 

The passage from distrust to apostacy is very short 
and easy; and a man is not far from murmuring against 
providence who is dissatisfied with its conduct. We 
should depend as fully upon God for preservation of his 
gifts as for the gifts themselves. 

To rely so much upon Providence as not to use the 
very powers and faculties with which the divine Being 
has endowed us, is to tempt God. 

That God has promised to protect and support his 
servants admits of no dispute ; but, as the path of duty 
is the way of safety, they are entitled to no good when 
they walk out of it. 

XXX.— APOSTACY. 

There has been much spoken against the doctrine of 
what is called free will by persons who seem not to have 
understood the term. Will is a free principle. Free 
will is as absurd as bound will: it is not will if it be 
not free ; and if it be bound, it is no will. Volition is 
essential to the being of the soul, and to all rational and 
intellectual beings. This is the most essential discrimi- 
nation between matter and spirit. Matter can have no 
choice, spirit has. Ratiocination is essential to intel- 
lect; and from these volition is inseparable. God 
uniformly treats man as a free agent ; and on this 
principle the whole of divine revelation is constructed, 
as is also the doctrine of future rewards and punish- 
ments. If a man be forced to believe, he believes not 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — APOSTACY. 361 

at all : it is the forcing power that believes, not the 
machine forced. If he be forced to obey, it is the 
forcing power that obeys ; and he, as a machine, shows 
only the effect of this irresistible force. If a man be in- 
capable of willing good and willing evil, he is incapable 
of being saved as a rational being ; and if he acts only 
under an overwhelming compulsion, he is as incapable 
of being damned. In short, this doctrine reduces him 
either to a punctum stans, which by the vis inerti<z 
is incapable of being moved, but as acted upon by 
foreign influence ; or, as an intellectual being, to non- 
entity. 

The power to will and the power to act must neces- 
sarily come from God, who is the Author both of the 
soul and the body, and of all their powers and energies ; 
but the act of volition and the act of working come 
from the man. God gives power to will : man wills 
through that power ; God gives power to act, and man 
acts through that power. Without the power to will, 
man can will nothing ; without the power to work, man 
can do nothing. God neither wills for man, nor works 
in man's stead, but he furnishes him with power to do 
both ; he is, therefore, accountable to God for these 
powers. 

It is only in the use of lawful means that we have 
any reason to expect God's blessing and help. One of 
the ancients has remarked, "Though God has made 
man without himself, he will not save him without him- 
self;" and therefore man's own concurrence of will, and 
co-operation of power with God, are essentially neces- 
sary to his preservation and salvation. This co-opera- 
tion is the grand condition, sine qua non, of which God 
will help or save. But is not this endeavouring to merit 
salvation by our own works? No : for this is impossi- 
ble, unless we could prove that all the mental and cor- 
poreal powers which we possess come from and of 
ourselves, and that we hold them independently of the 
power and beneficence of our Creator ; and that every 
act of these was of infinite value, to make it an equiva- 
lent for the heaven we wished to purchase. Putting 
forth the hand to receive the alms of a benevolent man, 
can never be considered a purchase price for the bounty 
bestowed. For ever shall that word stand true in all its 

16 



362 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — APOSTACY. 

parts, " Christ is the Author of eternal salvation to all 
them that obey him." 

It is not for want of holy resolutions and heavenly 
influences that men are not saved, but through their 
own unsteadiness ; they do not persevere, they forget the 
necessity of continuing in prayer, and thus the Holy 
Spirit is grieved, departs from them, and leaves them to 
their own darkness and hardness of heart. When we 
consider the heavenly influences which many receive 
who draw back to perdition, and the good fruits which, 
for a time, they bore, it is blasphemy to say, They had no 
genuine or saving grace. They had it, they showed it, 
they trifled with it, and sinned against it ; and therefore 
are lost. 

What a comfortable thought it is to the followers of 
Christ, that neither men nor demons can act against 
them but by the permission of their heavenly Father, 
and that he will not suffer any of those who trust in 
him to be tried above what they are able to bear, and 
will make the trial end in their greater salvation, and 
in his glory ! 

Slothfulness is natural to man ; it requires much 
training to induce him to labour for his daily bread : if 
God should miraculously send it, he will wonder and eat 
it ; and that is the whole. " Strive to enter in at the 
strait gate," is an ungracious word to many ; they 
profess to trust in God's mercy, but labour not to enter 
that rest. God will not reverse his purpose to meet 
their slothfulness : they alone who overcome shall sit 
with Jesus on his throne. Reader, " take unto thee the 
whole armour of God, that thou mayest be able to stand 
in the evil day, and, having done all, to stand." And 
remember that he only who endures to the end shall 
be saved. 

If to " watch" be to employ ourselves chiefly about 
the business of our salvation, alas ! how few of those 
who are called Christians are there who do watch ! 
how many who slumber ! how many who are asleep ! 
how many seized with a lethargy! how many quite 
dead ! 

You have many enemies; be continually on your 
guard ; be always circumspect : 1. Be watchful against 
evil. 2. Watch for opportunities to do good. 3. Watch 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — APOSTACY. 363 

over each other in love. 4. Watch that none may draw 
you aside from the belief and unity of the gospel. 

He that is self-confident is already half fallen. He 
who professes to believe that God will absolutely keep 
him from falling finally, and neglects watching unto 
prayer, is not in a safer state. He who lives by the 
moment, walks in the light, and maintains his commu- 
nion w r ith God, is in no danger of apostacy. 

Will it avail any of us how near we get to heaven, if 
the door be shut before we arrive ? How dreadful the 
thought, to have only missed being eternally saved ! to 
aim well, and yet to permit the devil, the world, or the 
flesh, to hinder in the few last steps ! Reader, watch and 
be sober. 

For want of a little more dependance upon God, how 
often does an excellent beginning come to an unhappy 
conclusion ! Many who were on the borders of the pro- 
mised land, and about to cross Jordan, have, through 
an act of unfaithfulness, been turned back to wander 
many a dreary year in the wilderness. Reader, be 
on thy guard. Trust in Christ, and watch unto prayer. 

He who changes from opinion to opinion, and from 
one sect or party to another, is never to be depended on ; 
there is much reason to believe that such a person is 
either mentally weak, or has never been rationally and 
divinely convinced of the truth. 

The apostle shows here five degrees of apostacy : 

1. Consenting to sin ; being deceived by its solicitations. 

2. Hardness of heart through giving way to sin. 3. Un- 
belief in consequence of this hardness, which leads them 
to call even the truth of the gospel in question. 4. 
This unbelief causing them to speak evil of the gospel, 
and the provision God has made for the salvation of their 
souls. 5. Apostacy itself, or falling off from the living 
God, and thus extinguishing all the light that was in 
them, and finally grieving the Spirit of God, so that he 
takes his flight, and leaves them to a seared conscience 
and reprobate mind. He who begins to give the least 
way to sin is in danger of final apostacy : the best re- 
medy against this is, to get the evil heart removed ; as 
one murderer in the house is more to be dreaded than 
ten without. 

Every believer in Christ is in danger of apostacy while 



364 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — APOSTACY. 

any remains of the evil heart of unbelief are found in him. 
God has promised to purify the heart, and the blood of 
Christ cleanses from all sin. It is, therefore, the highest 
wisdom of genuine Christians to look to God for the 
complete purification of their souls ; this they cannot 
have too soon, and for this they cannot be too much in 
earnest. 

Who can adequately describe the misery and wretch- 
edness of that soul which has lost its union with the 
Fountain of all good, and, in losing this, has lost the 
possibility of happiness till the simple eye be once more 
given, and the straight line once more drawn 1 

How strange is it that there should be found any back- 
slider ! that one who once felt the power of Christ should 
ever turn aside! But it is still stranger that any one 
who has felt it, and given, in his life and conversation, 
full proof that he has felt it, should not only let it slip, 
but at last deny that he ever had it, and even ridicule a 
work of grace in the heart ! Such instances have ap- 
peared among men. 

Where there are so many snares and dangers, it is 
impossible to be too watchful and circumspect. Satan, 
as a roaring lion, as a subtle serpent, or in the guise of 
an angel of light, is momentarily going about seeking 
whom he may deceive, blind, and devour ; and, when it 
is considered that the human heart, till entirely renewed, 
is on his side, it is a miracle of mercy that any soul 
escapes perdition : no man is safe any longer than he 
maintains the spirit of watchfulness and prayer ; and to 
maintain such a spirit, he has need of all the means of 
grace. He who neglects any of them which the mercy 
of God has placed in his power, tempts the devil to 
tempt him. As a preventive of backsliding and apos- 
tacy, the apostle recommends mutual exhortation. No 
Christian should live for himself alone ; he should con- 
sider his fellow Christian as a member of the same body, 
and feel for him accordingly, and love, succour, and pro- 
tect him. When this is carefully attended to in religious 
society, Satan finds it very difficult to make an inroad on 
the church ; but when coldness, distance, and want of 
brotherly love take place, Satan can attack each singly, 
and, by successive victories over individuals, soon make 
an easy conquest of the whole. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY APOSTACY. 365 

" But he that lacketh these things :" he, whether 
Jew or Gentile, who professes to have faith in God, 
and has not added to that faith, fortitude, knowledge, 
temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and 
universal love, "is blind," his understanding is darkened, 
and cannot see afar off, shutting his eyes against the 
light, winking, not able to look truth in the face, nor to 
behold that God whom he once knew was reconciled to 
him ; and thus it appears he is wilfully blind, " and hath 
forgotten that he was purged from his old sins" — has at 
last, through the non-improvement of the grace which 
he received from God, his faith ceasing to work by love, 
lost the evidence of things not seen : for, having grieved 
the Holy Spirit by not showing forth the virtues of Him 
who called him into his marvellous light, he has lost the 
testimony of his sonship ; and then darkness and hard 
ness having taken the place of light and filial confidence, 
he first calls all his former experience into doubt ; — 
questions whether he has not put enthusiasm in the 
place of religion. By these means his darkness and 
hardness increase, his memory becomes indistinct and 
confused, till at length he forgets the work of God on 
his soul, next denies it, and at last asserts that the know- 
ledge of salvation by the remission of sins is impossible, 
and that no man can be saved from sin in this life. 
Indeed, some go so far as to deny the Lord that bought 
them ; to renounce Jesus Christ as having made atone- 
ment for them ; and finish their career of apostacy by 
utterly denying his godhead. Many cases of this kind 
have I known; and they are all the consequence of 
believers not continuing to be workers together with 
God, after they had experienced his pardoning love. 

Here (2 Peter ii, 22) is a sad proof of the possibility 
of falling from grace, and from very high degrees of it 
too. These had escaped from the contagion that was in 
the w r orld ; they had had true repentance, and cast up 
" their sour-sweet morsel of sin ;" they had been washed 
from all their filthiness, and this must have been through 
the blood of the Lamb ; yet, after all, they went back, 
got entangled with their old sins, swallowed down their 
formerly rejected lusts, and rewallowed in the mire of 
corruption. It is no wonder that God should say, " The 
latter end is worse with them than the beginning :" reason 



366 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — APOSTACY. 

and nature say, "It must be so;" and divine justice 
says, " It ought to be so ;" and the person himself must 
confess that it is right that it should be so. But how 
dreadful is this state ! How dangerous, when the per- 
son has abandoned himself to his old sins ! Yet it is 
not said that it is impossible for him to return to his 
Maker ; though his case be deplorable, it is not utterly 
hopeless ; the leper may yet be made clean, and the 
dead may be raised. Reader, is thy backsliding a grief 
and burden to thee ? Then thou art not far from the 
kingdom of God ; believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou 
shalt be saved. 

The backslider's soul, before influenced by the Spirit 
of God, dilated and expanded under its heavenly influ- 
ences, becomes more capable of refinement in iniquity, 
as its powers are more capacious than formerly. Evil 
habits are formed and strengthened by relapses ; and 
relapses are multiplied, and become more incurable, 
through new habits. 

A soul cut off from the flock of God is in an awful 
state ! His outward defence is departed from him ; and 
being no longer accountable to any for his conduct, he 
generally plunges into unprecedented depths of iniquity, 
and the last state of that man becomes worse than the 
first. Reader, art thou without the pale of God's church? 
Remember, it is written, ** Them that are without, God 
judgeth." 

The backslider's affections and desires are no longer 
busied with the things of God, but gad about, like an 
idle person, among the vanities of a perishing world. 
Swept from love, meekness, and all the fruits of the 
Spirit ; and garnished, or adorned, decorated with the 
vain showy trifles of folly and fashion. This may com- 
prise also smart speeches, cunning repartees, &c, for 
which many who have lost the life of God are very 
remarkable. 

In a state of probation every thing may change. 
"While we are in life we may stand or fall. Our stand- 
ing in the faith depends on our union with God ; and 
that depends on our watching unto prayer, and continu- 
ing to possess that faith that worketh by love. The 
highest saint under heaven can stand no longer than he 
depends upon God, and continues in the obedience of 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — DEATH. 367 

faith. He that ceases to do so will fall into sin, and 
get a darkened understanding and a hardened heart ; 
and he may continue in this state till God come to take 
away his soul. Therefore, let him who most assuredly 
standeth take heed lest he fall, not only partially, but 
finally. 

When probation ends, eternity begins. In a state of 
trial the good may change to bad, the bad to good. It 
is utterly absurd to say that the day of grace may end 
before the day of life. It is impossible ; as then the 
state of probation would be confounded with eternity. 
The Scriptures alleged by some in behalf of their senti- 
ment are utterly misunderstood and misapplied. There 
can be no truer proverb than, "While there is life there 
is hope." Probation necessarily implies the possibility 
of change. 

XXXI.— DEATH. 

Life itself is a wonder, and in its principles inexpli- 
cable. Its preservation is not less so. Apparently, it 
depends on the circulation of the blood through the 
heart, the lungs, and the whole system, by means of the 
arteries and veins ; and this seems to depend on the 
inspiration and expiration of the air by means of the 
lungs. While the pulsations of the heart continue, the 
blood circulates, and life is preserved. But this seems 
to depend on respiration, or the free inhaling of the 
atmospheric air, and expiration of the same. While, 
therefore, we freely breathe ; while the lungs receive 
and expel the air by respiration or breathing ; and the 
heart continues to beat, thus circulating the blood through 
the whole system, life is preserved. But who can 
explain the phenomena of respiration 1 And by what 
power do the lungs separate the oxygen of the air, for 
the nutrition, perfection, and circulation of the blood? 
And by what power is it that the heart continues to 
expand, in order to receive the blood, and contract, in 
order to repelit, so that the circulation may be continued, 
which must continue in order that life may be preserved? 
Why does the heart not get weary and rest ? Why is 
it that, with incessant labour, for even threescore and 
ten years, it is not exhausted of its physical power, and 



368 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — DEATH. 

so stand still? These are questions which God alone 
can answer satisfactorily, because life depends on him, 
whatsoever means he may choose to employ for its con- 
tinuance and preservation. 

Every man, since the fall, has not only been liable to 
death, but has deserved it, as all have forfeited their 
lives because of sin. 

Death could not have entered into the world, if sin 
had not entered first. It was sin that not only intro 
duced death, but has armed him with all his destroying 
force. The goad or dagger of death is sin ; by this both 
body and soul are slain. 

The people who know not God are in continual tor- 
ment, through the fear of death, because they fear some- 
thing beyond death. They are conscious to themselves 
that they are wicked ; and they are afraid of God, and 
terrified at the thought of eternity. By these fears 
thousands of sinful, miserable creatures are prevented 
from harrying themselves into the unknown world. 

Reader, thou art a tenant at will to God Almighty. 
How soon, in what place, or in what circumstances, he 
may call thee to march into the eternal world, thou 
knowest not. But this uncertainty cannot perplex thee, 
if thou be properly subject to the will of God, ever will- 
ing to lose thy own in it. But thou canst not be thus 
subject, unless thou hast, the testimony of the presence 
and approbation of God. How awful to be obliged to 
walk into the valley of the shadow of death without 
this ! Reader, prepare to meet thy God. 

Death is at no great distance ; thou hast but a short 
time to do good. Acquire a heavenly disposition while 
here ; for there will be no change after this life. If thou 
diest in the love of God and in the love of man, in that 
state wilt thou be found in the day of judgment. If a 
tree about to fall lean to the north, to the north it will 
fall ; if to the south, it will fall to that quarter. In 
whatever disposition or state of soul thou diest, in that 
thou wilt be found in the eternal world. Death refines 
nothing, purines nothing, kills no sin, helps to no glory. 
Let thy continual bent and inclination be to God, to 
holiness, to charity, to mercy, and to heaven : then, fall 
when thou mayest, thou wilt fall well. 

I have never fallen out with life. I have borne many 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — DEATH. 369 

of its rude blasts, and I have been fostered by many of its 
finest breezes ; and should I complain against time and 
the dispensations of Providence, then shame would be 
to me. Indeed, if God see it right, I have no objection 
to live on here till the day of judgment ; for while the 
earth lasts, there will be something to do by a heart, 
head, and hand, like mine, as long as there is something 
to be learned, something to be sympathetically felt, and 
something to be done. I have not lived to or for my- 
self. I am not conscious to myself that I have ever 
passed one such day. 

It is a good antidote against the fear of death, to find, 
as the body grows old and decays, the soul grows young 
and is invigorated. By the " outward man" and the 
" inward man," St. Paul shows that he was no material- 
ist. He believed that we have both a body and a soul ; 
and so far was he from supposing that, when the body 
dies, the whole man is decomposed, and continues so to 
the resurrection, that he asserts that the decays of the 
one lead to the invigorating of the other ; and that the 
very decomposition of the body itself leaves the soul in 
the state of renewed youth. The vile doctrine of mate- 
rialism is not apostolic. 

The nearer a faithful soul comes to the verge of 
eternity, the more the light and influence of heaven are 
poured out upon it: time and life are fast sinking away 
into the shades of death and darkness ; and the efful- 
gence of the dawning glory of the eternal world is begin- 
ning to illustrate the blessed state of the genuine Chris- 
tian, and to render clear and intelligible those counsels 
of God, partly displayed in various inextrieable provi- 
dences, and partly revealed and seen as through a glass 
darkly in his own sacred word. Unutterable glories 
now begin to burst forth ; pains, afflictions, persecutions, 
wants, distresses, sickness, and death, in any or all of 
its forms, are exhibited as the way to the kingdom, and 
as having in the order of God an ineffable glory for their 
result. Here are the wisdom, power, and mercy of God. 
Here, the patience, perseverance, and glory of the saints ! 
Reader, are not earth and its concerns lost in the efful- 
gence of this glory ? Arise and depart, for this is not 
thy rest. 

What do we know of the state of separate spirits ? 
16* 



370 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — JUDGMENT. 

What do we know of the spiritual world ? How do 
souls exist separate from their respective bodies? Of 
what are they capable, and what is their employment? 
Who can answer these questions ? Perhaps nothing can 
be said much better of the state, than is said Job x, 21 : 
"A land of obscurity like darkness, and the shadow of 
death ;" a place where death rules, over which he pro- 
jects his shadow, intercepting every light of every kind 
of life : " Without any order," having no arrangements, 
no distinctions of inhabitants ; the poor and the rich are 
there, the master and his slave, the king and the beggar; 
their bodies in equal corruption and disgrace, their souls 
distinguished only by their moral character. 

Stripped of their flesh, they stand in their naked sim- 
plicity before God, in that place. "Where the light is 
as darkness :" a palpable obscure. It is space and 
place, and has only such light or capability of distinction 
as renders darkness visible ! It is a murky land, covered 
with the thick darkness of c&ath : a land of wretched- 
ness and obscurities, where is the shadow of death, and 
no order but sempiternal horror dwells everywhere : a 
duration not characterized or measured by any of the 
attributes of time : where there is no order of darkness 
and light, night and day, heat and cold, summer and 
winter. It is the state of the dead ! The place of sepa- 
rate spirits ! It is out of time, out of probation, beyond 
change or mutability ! It is on the confines of eternity ; 
but what is this ? and where ? Eternity ! how can I 
form any conception of thee ? In thee there is no order, 
no bounds, no substance, no progression, no change, no 
past, no present, no future. It is an indescribable some- 
thing, to which there is no analogy in the compass of 
creation. It is infinity and incomprehensibility to all 
finite beings. It is what living I know not, and what I 
must die to know ; and even then I shall apprehend no 
more of it than merely to know that it is eternity. 

XXXIL— JUDGMENT. 

Those systems which contain any thing like the hope 
of a resurrection are borrowed from this Book. But the 
authors have admitted this gleam of light into their sys- 
tems, as a sort of veil to cover the mass of putrefaction, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — JUDGMENT. 371 

which otherwise would be too horrid, and to impress 
their followers with the idea that their system was sacred 
and divine. 

The justice of God is as much concerned in the 
resurrection of the dead, as either his power or mercy. 
To be freed from earthly encumbrances, earthly passions, 
bodily infirmities, sickness, and death; to be brought 
into a state of conscious existence, with a refined body, 
and a sublime soul, both immortal, and both ineffably 
happy — how glorious the privilege ! 

The day of judgment ! what an awful word is this ! 
what a truly terrific time ! when the heavens shall be 
shrivelled as a scroll, and the elements melt with fervent 
heat ? when the earth and its appendages shall be burned 
up, and the fury of that conflagration be such, that 
"there shall be no more sea !" a time when the noble 
and ignoble dead, the small and the great, shall stand 
before God, and all be judged according to the deeds 
done in the body ; yea, a time when the thoughts of the 
heart and every secret thing shall be brought to light; 
when the innumerable millions of transgressions, and 
embryo and abortive sins, shall be exhibited in their pur- 
poses and intents ; a time when justice, eternal jus- 
tice, shall sit alone upon the throne, and pronounce a 
sentence as impartial as irrevocable, and as awful as 
eternal ! There is a term of human life ; and every hu- 
man being is rapidly gliding to it as fast as the wings of 
time, in their onward motion, incomprehensibly swift, 
can carry him ! And shall not the living lay this to 
heart? Should we not live in order to be judged ? And 
should we not live and die so as to live again to all 
eternity, not with Satan and his angels, but with God and 
his saints ? O thou man of God ! thou Christian ! thou 
immortal spirit ! think of these things ! 

Observe the order of this terribly glorious day : — 1. Je- 
sus, in all the dignity and splendour of his eternal ma- 
jesty, shall descend from heaven to the mid region, 
what the apostle calls the " air," somewhere within the 
earth's atmosphere. 2. Then the shout or order shall 
be given for the dead to arise. 3. Next the archangel, 
as the herald of Christ, shall repeat the order, " Arise, 
ye dead, and come to judgment !" 4. When all the 
dead in Christ are raised, then the " trumpet shall sound," 



372 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — HELL. 

as the signal for them all to flock together to the throne 
of Christ. It was by the sound of the trumpet that the 
solemn assemblies, under the law, were convoked ; and 
to such convocations there seems to be here an allusion. 
5. When the dead in Christ are raised, their vile bodies 
being made like unto his glorious body, then, 6. Those 
who are alive shall be changed, and made immortal. 
7. These shall be " caught up together with them to 
meet the Lord in the air." 8. We may suppose that 
the judgment will now be set, and the books opened, and 
the dead judged out of the things written in those books. 
9. The eternal states of quick and dead being thus de- 
termined, then all who shall be found to "have made a 
covenant with him by sacrifice," and to have "washed 
their robes, and made them white in the blood of the 
Lamb," shall be taken to his eternal glory, and "be for 
ever with the Lord." What an inexpressibly terrific 
glory will then be exhibited ! I forbear to call in here 
the descriptions which men of a poetic turn have made 
of this terrible scene, because I cannot trust to their 
correctness ; and it is a subject which we should speak 
of and contemplate as nearly as possible in the words 
of Scripture. 

XXXIIL— HELL. 

Hell was made only for the devil and his angels, not 
for man : man is an intruder into it ; no human spirit 
shall ever be found there, but through its own fault. 
He who refuses the only means of salvation is lost. 
God wiileth not his death. 

Every sinner earns everlasting perdition by long, sore, 
and painful service. O what pains do men take to get 
to hell ! Early and late they toil at sin ; and would not 
divine justice be in their debt, if it did not pay them 
their due wages ? 

Men may quibble and trifle here, but their desperate 
criticisms will not be urged there. There is no injustice 
in hell, more than there is in heaven. He who does 
not deserve it shall never fall into the bitter pains of 
eternal death. 

The utmost power of human nature could not, for a 
moment, endure the wrath of God, the deathless worm, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — HELL. 373 

and the unquenchable fire. The body must die, be de- 
composed, and be built upon indestructible principles, 
before this punishment can be borne. 

Could it be even supposed that moral purgation could 
be effected by penal sufferings, which is already proved 
to be absurd, we have no evidence of any such place as 
purgatory, in which this purgation can be effected : it is 
a mere fable, either collected from spurious and apocry- 
phal writings, canonized by superstition and ignorance; 
or it is the offspring of the deliriums of pious visionaries, 
early converts from heathenism, from which they im- 
ported this part of their creed. There is not one text 
of Scripture, legitimately interpreted, that gives the least 
countenance to a doctrine, as dangerous to the souls of 
men as it has been gainful to its inventors : so that, if 
such purgation were possible, the place where it is to be 
effected cannot be proved to exist. Before, therefore, 
any dependance can be placed on the doctrines raised 
on this supposition, the existence of the place must be 
proved ; and the possibility of purgation in that place 
demonstrated. 

A purgatory was feigned by the papists, for the re- 
finement and cleansing of offences which had not been 
duly satisfied for in life: and even in this place, the 
prayers of the church, purchased by the money of sur- 
viving friends, were of sovereign virtue, to alleviate and 
shorten the sufferings of the deceased culprits, and get 
them a speedier passport from penal fire to the paradise 
into which all sent thither by the church had an unalien- 
able right to enter. 

We may safely conclude that the view which damned 
souls have in the gulf of perdition, of the happiness of 
the blessed, and the conviction that they themselves 
might have eternally enjoyed this felicity, from which, 
through their own fault, they are eternally excluded, 
will form no mean part of the punishment of the lost. 

Even in hell, a damned spirit must abhor the evil by 
which he is tormented, and desire that good which would 
free him from his torment. If a lost soul could be re- 
conciled to its torment, and to its situation, then, of 
course, its punishment must cease to be such. An eter- 
nal desire to escape from evil, and an eternal desire to 
be united to the supreme good, the gratification of which 



374 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — HELL. 

is for ever impossible, must make a second circumstance 
in the misery of the lost. 

The remembrance of the good things possessed in life, 
and now to be enjoyed no more for ever, together with 
the grace offered or abused, will form a third circum- 
stance in the perdition of the ungodly. 

The torments which a soul endures in the hell of fire 
will form, through all eternity, a continual, present 
source of indescribable wo. 

The known impossibility of ever escaping from this 
place of torment, or to have any alleviation of one's 
misery in it, forms a fifth circumstance in the punish- 
ment of ungodly men. 

The iniquitous conduct of relations and friends, who 
have been perverted by the bad example of those who 
are lost, is a source of present punishment to them. 

The bitter reflection, "I might have avoided sin, but 
I did not ; I might have been saved, but I would not," 
must be equal to ten thousand tormentors. What into- 
lerable anguish must this produce in a damned soul ! 

There are various degrees of punishment in hell, an- 
swerable to various degrees of guilt ; and the contempt 
manifested to, and the abuse made of, the preaching of 
the gospel, will rank semi-infidel Christians in the high- 
est list of transgressors, and purchase them the hottest 
hell ! It will be more tolerable for certain sinners, who 
have already been damned nearly four thousand years, 
than for those who live and die infidels under the gos- 
pel ! An eternity of darkness, fears, and pains, for 
comparatively a moment of sensual gratification, — how 
terrible the thought ! 

To suppose that sinners shall be annihilated, is as 
great a heresy, though scarcely so absurd, as to believe 
that the pains of damnation are emendatory, and that 
hell fire shall burn out. There is presumptive evidence 
from Scripture to lead us to the conclusion that, if there 
be not eternal punishment, glory will not be eternal ; 
as the same terms are used to express the duration of 
both. No human spirit, that is not united to God, can 
be saved. " Those who are far from thee shall perish;" 
they shall be lost, undone, ruined, 'and that without re- 
medy. Being separated from God by sin, they shall 
never be rejoined ; the great gulf must be between them 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — HELL. 3/5 

and their Maker eternally. As the sinful nature con- 
tinues its operations even in the place of torment, these 
are continual reasons why that punishment should be 
continued. When we can prove that the gospel shall 
be preached in hell, and offers of salvation, free, full, 
and present, be made to the damned, then we may ex- 
pect that the worm that dieth not, shall die *, and the 
lire that is not quenched, shall burn out ! 

We have no evidence from Scripture or reason that 
there are emendatoiy punishments in the eternal world. 
The state of probation certainly extends only to the 
ultimate term of human life. We have no evidence, 
either from Scripture or reason, that it extends to ano- 
ther state. There is not only a deep silence on this in 
the divine records, but there are the most positive 
declarations against it. In time and life, the great 
business relative to eternity is to be transacted. On 
passing the limits of time, we enter into eternity: this 
is the unchangeable state. In that awful and indescrib 
able infinitude of incomprehensible duration, we read of 
but two places or states : heaven and hell ; glory and 
misery ; endless suffering and endless enjoyment. In 
these two places or states, we read of but two descrip- 
tions of human beings : the saved and the lost ; between 
whom there is that immeasurable gulf, over which no 
one can pass. In the one state we read of no sin, no 
imperfection, no curse : there all tears are for ever 
wiped away from off all faces ; and the righteous shine 
like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. In the 
other we read of nothing but " weeping, wailing, gnash- 
ing of teeth ;" of the worm that dieth not; and of " the 
fire which is not quenched." Here, the effects and 
consequences of sin appear in all their colourings, and 
in all their consequences. Here, no dispensation of 
grace is published ; no offers of mercy made : the un 
holy are unholy still, nor can the circumstances of their 
case afford any means by which their state can be me- 
liorated ; and it is impossible that sufferings, whether 
penal or incidental, can destroy that cause (sin) by which 
they were produced. 

It cannot be said that beings, in a state of penal suf- 
ferings, under the wrath and displeasure of God, (for 
if they suffer penally, they must be under that displea- 



376 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — HEAVEN. 

sure,) can either love or serve him. Their sufferings 
are the consequences of their crimes, and can form no 
part of their obedience. Therefore, all the ages in which 
they suffer, are ages spent in sinning against the first 
and essential law of their creation ; and must necessa- 
rily increase the aggregate of their demerit, and lay the 
eternally successive necessity of continuance in that 
place and state of torment. Thus it is evident that 
this doctrine, so specious and promising at its first 
appearance, is essentially defective, and contains in itself 
the seeds of its own destruction. Besides, if the fire of 
hell could purify from sin, all the dispensations of God's 
grace and justice among men must have been useless : 
and the mission of Jesus Christ most palpably unneces- 
sary, as all that is proposed to be effected by his grace 
and Spirit, might : be, on this doctrine, effected by a 
proportionate continuance in hell fire : and there, innu- 
merable ages are but a point in reference to eternity ; 
and any conceivable or inconceivable duration of these 
torments is of no consequence in this argument, as long 
as, at their termination, an eternity still remains. 

What this everlasting destruction consists in, we 
cannot tell. It is not annihilation, for their being con- 
tinues ; and as the destruction is everlasting, it is an 
eternal continuance and presence of substantial evil, 
and absence of all good ; for a part of this punishment 
consists in being banished from the presence of the 
Lord — excluded from his approbation for ever ; so that 
the li^ht of his countenance can be no more enjoyed, as 
theri will be an eternal impossibility of ever being re- 
conciled to him. Never to see the face of God through- 
out eternity, is a heart-rending, soul-appalling thought ; 
and to be banished from the glory of his power, that 
power the glory of which is peculiarly manifested in 
saving the lost and glorifying the faithful, is what cannot 
be reflected on without confusion and dismay. 

XXXIV.— HEAVEN. 

The state of eternal glory implies three things: — 1. An 
absence of all suffering, pain, sin, and evil. 2. The pre- 
sence of all good, both of the purest and most exalted 
kind. And, 3. The complete satisfaction of all the de- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY HEAVEN. 377 

sires of the soul, at all times, and through eternity, 
without the possibility of decrease on the one hand, or 
of satiety on the other, or of any termination of the exist- 
ence of the receiver or the received. This is ineffably 
great and glorious, but the apostle exceeds all this by 
saying, "an heir of God." It is therefore not heaven 
merely ; it is not the place where no ill can enter, and 
where pure and spiritual good is eternally present ; it is 
not merely a state of endless blessedness in the regions 
of glory ; it is God himself ; — God in his plenitude of 
glories ; God, who, by the eternal communications of 
his glories, meets every wish and satisfies every desire 
of a deathless and imperishable spirit, which he has 
created for himself, and of which himself is the only 
portion. To a soul composed of infinite desires, what 
would the place or state called "heaven" be, if God 
were not there 1 God, then, is the portion of the soul, 
and the only portion with which its infinite powers can 
be satisfied. How wonderful is his lot ! A child of 
corruption, lately a slave of sin and heir of perdition ; 
tossed about with every storm of life ; in afflictions 
many and privations oft ; having perhaps scarcely where 
to lay his head ; and at last prostrated by death, and 
mingled with the dust of the earth; but now, how 
changed ! The soul is renewed in glory ; the body 
fashioned after the glorious human nature of Jesus 
Christ ; and both joined together in an indestructible 
bond, clearer than the indestructible moon, brighter 
than the sun, and more resplendent than all the heavenly 
spheres; for having conquered and triumphed in the 
church militant, it is now set down with Jesus on his 
throne, as he, having overcome, is set down with the 
Father on the Father's throne. Hallelujah ! The Lord 
God Omnipotent reigneth ! And his children, his fol- 
lowers and confessors, shall reign with him for ever 
and ever ! Amen. 

Eternal life is the proper object of an immortal 
spirit's hope, the only sphere where the human intellect 
can rest, and be happy in the place and state where God 
is ; where he is seen as he is ; and where he can be 
enjoyed without interruption in an eternal progression 
of knowledge and beatitude. 

It is neither an earthly portion nor a heavenly por- 



378 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY HEAVEN. 

tion, but God himself who is to be their portion. It is 
not heaven they are to inherit ; it is God, who is infi- 
nitely greater and more glorious than heaven itself. With 
such powers has God created the soul of man, that 
nothing less than himself can be a sufficient and satis- 
factory portion for the mind of this most astonishing 
creature. 

The song of praise to God, through Christ, begun on 
earth, and protracted through all the generations of 
men, till the end of time, shall be continued in heaven 
by those who, having here received the salvation of 
God, and continued faithful unto death, in the resurrec- 
tion of the just are taken to that ineffable glory, where, 
being like him, they shall see him as he is ; and being 
raised to his right hand, have fulness of joy and plea- 
sures for evermore: in which state, eras, limits, and 
periods are absorbed in one eternal duration. 

It is in vain to attempt to describe this state : when 
we say that in it there is no sin, we at once see that in 
it there can be no pain, no misery, no death. From it all 
evil is absent, and in it all good is present. There the 
introduction of evil is impossible ; and there the loss of 
good is equally so. The time of probation is only on 
earth: the day of trial with the blessed is for ever 
ended ; and now they are in that state in reference to 
which their probation existed. This duration we often 
express by " world without end," that is, the world or 
state that has no end ; sometimes by " for ever and 
ever," that is, one ever or duration that is endless, suc- 
ceeding one that is ended. And sometimes by a yet 
more forcible expression, " for evermore," that is, for 
ever — through the whole lapse of time ; and more, the 
unlimited duration that shall succeed it. All these are 
phrases which labour to express what is at once both 
ineffable and inconceivable. 

God never removes any of his servants till they have 
accomplished the work he has given them to do. 
Extraordinary talents are not given merely in reference 
to this world. They refer also to eternity ; and shall 
there have their consummation and plenitude of em- 
ploy. Far be it from God to light up such tapers to 
burn only for a moment in the dark night of life, and 
then to extinguish them .for ever in the damps of death. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — HEAVEN. 379 

Heaven is the region where the spirits of just men made 
perfect live, thrive, and eternally expand their powers 
in the service and to the glory of Him from whom they 
have derived their being. 

So the- truly wise man is but in his twilight here 
below ; but he is in a state of glorious preparation for 
the realms of everlasting light ; till at last, emerging 
from darkness and the shadow of death, he is ushered 
into the full blaze of endless felicity. 

An unholy man cannot enter into heaven ; and were 
he in it, it would be no enjoyment to him, because it is 
not suited to him. The nature of the resident must be 
suited to the place of residence. The fishes live not on 
the elms, and the cattle browse not in the depths of the 
sea. . Hell is for demons and wicked men ; heaven for 
holy angels, and the spirits of just men made perfect. 
There is a fellowship among devils, and those who are 
partakers of a diabolic nature ; for aught we know, 

" Devil with devil damn'd firm concord holds ;" 

and we know that the holy inhabitants of heaven are 
brethren with holy souls. 

By these perpetual fountains we are to understand 
endless sources of comfort and happiness, which Jesus 
Christ will open out of his own infinite plenitude to all 
glorified souls. These eternal living fountains will make 
an infinite variety in the enjoyments of the blessed. 
There will be no sameness, and consequently no cloying 
with the perpetual enjoyment of the same things ; every 
moment will open a new source of pleasure, instruction, 
and improvement ; they shall make an eternal progres- 
sion into the fulness of God. And as God is infinite, so 
his attributes are infinite ; and throughout infinity more 
and more of those attributes will be discovered ; and 
the discovery of each will be a new fountain or source 
of pleasure and enjoyment. These sources must be 
opening through all eternity ; and yet, through all eter- 
nity, there will still remain, in the absolute perfections 
of the Godhead, an infinity of them to be opened ! This 
is one of the finest images in the Bible. 

Every holy soul has, throughout eternity, the beatific 
vision ; that is, it sees God as he is, because it is like 



380 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — GENERAL PRINCIPLES. 

him. It drinks in beatification from the presence of the 
eternal Trinity. 

" Pleasures for evermore," onwardly, perpetually, 
continually, well expressed by our translation, "ever 
and more," an eternal progression. Think of duration 
in the most extended and unlimited manner, and there 
is still more ; more to be suffered in hell, and more to 
be enjoyed in heaven. Great God ! grant that my 
readers may have this beatific sight ! this eternal pro- 
gression in unadulterated, unchangeable, and unlimited 
happiness. Hear this prayer, for His sake who found 
out the path of life, and who by his blood purchased an 
entrance into the holiest! Amen and Amen. 

XXXV.— GENERAL PRINCIPLES. 

1. That there is but one uncreated, unoriginated, 
infinite, and eternal Being ; — the Creator, Preserver, and 
Governor of all things. 

2. That there is in this infinite essence a plurality of 
what are commonly called persons ; not separately sub- 
sisting, but essentially belonging to the Godhead ; which 
persons are commonly termed Father, Son, and Holy 
Ghost ; or God, the Logos, and the Holy Spirit ; and 
these are generally named the Trinity, which term, 
though not found in the New Testament, seems pro- 
perly enough applied, as we never read of more than 
three persons in the Godhead. 

3. That the sacred Scriptures, or holy books, which 
form the Old and New Testaments, contain a full reve- 
lation of the will of God, in reference to man ; and are 
alone sufficient for every thing relative to the faith and 
practice of a Christian ; and were given by the inspira- 
tion of God. 

4. That man was created in righteousness and true 
holiness, without any moral imperfection, or any kind 
of propensity to sin ; but free to stand or fall. 

5. That he fell from this state, became morally cor- 
rupt in his nature, and transmitted his moral defilement 
to all his posterity. 

6. That to counteract the evil principle, and bring 
man into a salvable state, God, from his infinite love, 
formed the purpose of redeeming man from his lost 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — GENERAL PRINCIPLES. 381 

estate, by Christ Jesus ; and, in the interim, sent his 
Holy Spirit to enlighten, strive with, and convince men 
of sin, righteousness, and judgment. 

7. That in due time the divine Logos, called after- 
ward Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour, 
&c, became incarnated, and sojourned among men, 
teaching the purest truth, and working the most stupen- 
dous and beneficent miracles. 

8. That this divine Person, foretold by the prophets, 
and described by evangelists and apostles, is really and 
properly God ; having, by the inspired writers, assigned 
to him every attribute essential to the Deity ; being one 
with Him who is called God, Jehovah, &c* 

9. That he is also perfect man in consequence of his 
incarnation ; and in that man, or manhood, dwelt all 
the fulness of the Godhead bodily ; so that his nature 
is twofold — divine and human, or God manifested in the 
flesh. 

10. That his human nature is derived from the blessed 
Virgin Mary, through the creative energy of the Holy 
Ghost; but his divine nature, because God, infinite and 
eternal, is uncreated, underived, and unbegotten ; which, 
were it otherwise, he could not be God in any proper 
sense of the word ; but as he is God, the doctrine of the 
eternal Sonship must be false. f 

* In addition to the many other proofs in support of the great 
doctrine of the Godhead of Christ, which will be found in this vo- 
lume, (see page 99, &c.,) I would here recommend to the notice 
of the critical reader an admirable essay on the Greek article, 
published at the end of the doctor's notes on the Epistle to the Ephe- 
sians, by that accomplished scholar, H. S. Boyd, Esq., author of 
" Translations from Chrysostom," &c, who has read the Greek 
writers, both sacred and profane, with peculiar attention. It was 
carefully revised by him for the new edition of the Commentary, 
and was considered by Dr. Clarke the best piece ever written on 
the subject. The doctor's insertion of it is only one among many 
instances in which he showed his readiness to " sow beside all 
waters," and to avail himself of the talents of others to enrich his 
work and benefit the public. — S. D. 

t In the Minutes of Conference for the year 1827, (p. 77,) are 
these words : " It is the acknowledged right, and, under existing 
circumstances, the indispensable duty, of every chairman of a dis- 
trict, to ask all candidates for admission upon trial among us, if 
they believe the doctrine of the eternal Sonship of our Lord Jesus 
Christ as it is stated by Mr. Wesley, especially in his notes upon the 
first chapter of the Epistle to the Hebrews, to be agreeable to the 
Holy Scriptures ; and that it is also the acknowledged right 3 and, 



382 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — GENERAL PRINCIPLES. 

11. That, as he took upon him the nature of man, he 
died for the whole human race, without respect of per- 
sons ; equally for all, and for every man. 

12. That on the third day after his crucifixion and 
burial he rose from the dead ; and, after showing him- 
self many days to his disciples and others, he ascended 
to heaven, where, as God manifest in the flesh, he con- 
tinues, and shall continue, to be the Mediator of the 
human race, till the consummation of all things. 

13. That there is no salvation but through him, — and 
that throughout the Scriptures his passion and death are 
considered as sacrificial ; pardon and salvation being 
obtained by the shedding of his blood. 

14. That no human being since the fall either has or 
can have merit or worthiness of or by himself, and 
therefore has nothing to claim from God, but in the way 
of his mercy through Christ ; therefore pardon, and 
every other blessing promised in the gospel, have been 
purchased by his sacrificial death, and are given to men, 
not on account of any thing they have done or suffered, 
or can do or suffer, but for his sake or through his merit 
alone. 

15. That these blessings are received by faith ; be- 
cause not of works, nor of sufferings. 

16. That the power to believe, or grace of faith, is the 
free gift of God, without which none can believe ; but 
that the act of faith, or actually believing, is the act of 
the soul, under the influence of that power. But this 
power to believe, like all other gifts of God, may be 
slighted, not used, or misused, in consequence of which 
is that declaration, " He that believeth shall be saved ; 
but he that believeth not shall be damned." 

17. That justification, or the pardon of sin, is an in- 
stantaneous act of God's infinite mercy in behalf of a 
penitent soul, trusting only in the merits of Jesus Christ ; 
that this act is absolute in respect of all past sin, all 
being forgiven where any is forgiven. 

18. That the souls of all believers may be purified 

under existing circumstances, the indispensable duty, of the presi- 
dent of the conference for the time being, to examine particularly 
upon that doctrine every preacher proposed to be admitted into full 
connection, and to require an explicit and unreserved declaration 
of his assent to it. as a truth revealed in the inspired oracles." 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — GENERAL PRINCIPLES. 383 

from all sin in this life ; and that a man may live under 
the continual influence of the grace of Christ, without 
sinning against his God, all evil tempers and sinful pro- 
pensities being destroyed, and his heart filled with pure 
love both to God and man. 

19. That unless a believer live and walk in the spirit 
of obedience, he will fall from the grace of God, and 
forfeit all his Christian privileges and rights ; in which 
state of backsliding he may persevere, and, if so, perish 
everlastingly. 

20. That the whole period of human life is a state of 
probation, in every part of which a sinner may repent 
and turn to God, and in every part of it a believer may 
give way to sin and fall from grace ; and that this possi- 
bility of rising, and liability to falling, are essential to a 
state of trial or probation. 

21. That all the promises and threatenings of the 
word of God are conditional, as they regard man in re- 
ference to his being here and hereafter ; and that on this 
ground alone the sacred writings can be consistently 
interpreted or rightly understood. 

22. That man is a free agent, never being impelled by 
any necessitating influence either to do evil or good, but 
has it continually in his power to choose the life or death 
that is set before him ; on which ground he is an account- 
able being, and answerable for his own actions ; and on 
this ground also he is alone capable of being rewarded 
or punished. 

23. That his free w r ill is a necessary constituent of his 
rational soul, without which man must be a mere ma- 
chine, either the sport of blind chance, or the mere pa- 
tient of an irresistible necessity ; and, consequently, not 
accountable for any acts to which he was irresistibly 
impelled. 

24. That every human being has this freedom of will 
with a sufficiency of light and power to direct its opera- 
tions ; and that this powerful light is not inherent in any 
man's nature, but is graciously bestowed by Him who 
is the true light that lighteneth every man that cometh 
into the world. 

25. That as Christ has made, by his once offering 
himself upon the cross, a sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and 
satisfaction for the sins of the whole world ; and that, 



384 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — GENERAL PRINCIPLES. 

as his gracious Spirit strives with and enlightens all men, 
thus putting them in a salvable state ; therefore every 
human soul may be saved, if it be not his own fault. 

26. That Jesus Christ has instituted, and commanded 
to be perpetuated in his church, two sacraments ; bap- 
tism (sprinkling, washing with, or immersion in water) 
in the name of the holy and ever blessed Trinity, as a 
sign of the cleansing and regenerating influences of the 
Holy Ghost, producing a death unto sin, and a new birth 
unto righteousness ; and the eucharist or Lord's supper, 
as commemorating the sacrificial death of Christ. That 
by the first, once administered, every person may be 
initiated into the visible church ; and by the second, fre- 
quently administered, all believers maybe kept in mind 
of the foundation on which their salvation is built, and 
receive grace to enable them to adorn the doctrine of God 
their Saviour in all things. 

27. That the soul is immaterial and immortal, and can 
subsist independently of the body. 

28. That there will be a general resurrection of the 
dead, both of the just and unjust ; that the souls of both 
shall be reunited to their respective bodies ; and that 
both will be immortal, and live eternally. 

29. That there will be a day of judgment, after which 
all shall be punished or rewarded according to the deeds 
done in the body ; the wicked being sent to hell, and the 
righteous taken into heaven. 

30. That these states of reward and punishment shall 
have no end, forasmuch as the time of probation or trial 
is for ever terminated, and the succeeding state must 
necessarily be fixed and unalterable.* 

* The following lines were written in a lady's album :- 
I have enjoyed the spring of life ; 
I have endured the toils of summer; 
I have culled the fruits of autumn ; 
I am passing through the rigours of winter ; 
And am neither forsaken of God, 
Nor abandoned by man. 
I see, at no great distance, the dawn of a new day, 
The first of a spring that shall be eternal : 
It is advancing to meet me : — 
I haste to embrace it: — 
Welcome ! welcome ! eternal spring ! 
Hallelujah. 

Adam Clarke. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY KNOWLEDGE. 385 

31. That the origin of human salvation is found in 
the infinite philanthropy of God ; and that on this prin- 
ciple the unconditional reprobation of any soul is abso- 
lutely impossible. 

32. The sacred writings are a system of pure, unso- 
phisticated reason, proceeding from the immaculate mind 
of God; in many places, it is true, vastly elevated 
beyond what the reason of man could have devised or 
found out, but in no case contrary to human reason. 
They are addressed, not to the passions, but to the rea- 
son of man : every command is urged with reasons of 
obedience, and every promise and threatening founded 
on the most evident reason and propriety. The whole, 
therefore, are to be rationally understood, and rationally 
interpreted. He who would discharge reason from 
this its noblest province, is a friend in his heart to the 
Antichristian maxim, " Ignorance is the mother of devo- 
tion. " Revelation and reason go hand in hand. Faith 
is the servant of the former, and the friend of the latter : 
while the Spirit of God, which gave the revelation, 
improves and exalts reason, and gives energy and effect 
to faith. 



XXXVI.— MISCELLANEOUS. 

KNOWLEDGE. 

It is the will of God that Christians should be well 
instructed ; that they should become wise and intelligent, 
and have their understandings well cultivated and im 
proved. Sound learning is of great worth, even in reli- 
gion; the wisest and best instructed Christians are the 
most steady, and may be the most useful. If a man be 
a child in knowledge, he is likely to be tossed to and 
fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine; and 
often lies at the mercy of interested, designing' men ; 
the more knowledge he has, the more safe is his state. 
If our circumstances be such that we have few means of 
improvement, we should turn them to the best account 
Partial knowledge is better than total ignorance. He 
who cannot get all he may wish must take heed to 
-acquire all that he can. If total ignorance be a bad and 
dangerous thing, every degree of knowledge lessens both 
17 



386 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — KNOWLEDGE. 

the evil and the danger. It must never be forgotten that 
the Holy Scriptures themselves are capable of making 
men wise unto salvation, if read and studied with faith 
in Christ. 

Genuine wisdom is ever accompanied with meekness 
and gentleness. Those proud, overbearing, and disdain- 
ful men who pass for great scholars and eminent critics, 
may have learning, but they have not wisdom. That 
learning implies their correct knowledge of the structure 
of language, and of composition in general; but wisdom 
they have none, nor any self-government. They are 
like the blind man who carried a lantern in daylight to 
keep others from justling him in the street. That learning 
is not only of little worth, but despicable, that does not 
teach a man to govern his own spirit, and to be humble 
in his conduct toward others. 

We must not suppose that eminent endowments neces- 
sarily imply gracious dispositions. A man may have 
much light and little love ; he may be very wise in 
secular matters, and know but little of himself, and less 
of his God. There is as truly a learned ignorance as 
there is a refined and useful learning. One of our 
old writers said, " Knowledge that is not applying is like 
a candle which a man holds to light himself to hell." 
The Corinthians abounded in knowledge, and science, 
and eloquence, and various extraordinary gifts ; but in 
many cases they were grossly ignorant of the genius and 
design of the gospel. Many since their time have put 
words and observances in place of the weightier matters 
of the law, and the spirit of the gospel. The apostle 
has taken great pains to correct these abuses among the 
Corinthians, and to insist on that great, unchangeable, 
and eternal truth,— that love to God and man, filling the 
heart, hallowing the passions, regulating the affections, 
and producing universal benevolence and beneficence, 
is the fulfilling of all law; and that all professions, 
knowledge, gifts, &c, without this, are absolutely 
useless. 

Truth is so amiable and important in every depart- 
ment of knowledge, that no pains should be spared to 
acquire it. It is not only excellent in its source, but 
also in the last faint glimmerings of its farthest projected 
rays: to whatever distance these have shone forth, and 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — KNOWLEDGE. 387 

however intermixed, they should, if possible, be ana- 
lyzed, and traced back to their origin. 

Truth is the contrary to falsity. Truth has been de- 
fined, " the conformity of notions to things ; of words to 
thoughts." It declares the thing that is, and as it is ; 
whereas falsity, in all its acceptations, is that which is 
not; what is pretended to be a fact, but either is no 
fact, or is not presented as it really is. The revelation 
of God to man, in reference to his salvation, is the truth, 
the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. It bears a 
strict conformity to the perfections of the divine nature. 
It inspires such notions as are conformable to the things 
of which they are the mental ectypes, and describes its 
subjects by such words as are conformable to the thoughts 
they represent. 

Every Christian should study philosophy, as from it 
he will more evidently discover, 1. That he who is so 
fearfully and wonderfully made, so marvellously pre- 
served, and so bountifully fed, should give up unre- 
servedly his all to God, and devote the powers which he 
has received to the service of the Creator. 2. When 
atheistical notions would intrude, a few reflections on the 
manifold wisdom displayed in the creation may be the 
means of breaking the subtle snare of a designing foe. 
And, 3. By the study of nature, under grace, the soul 
becomes more enlarged, and is capable of bearing a more 
extensive, deeper, and better defined image of the divine 
perfections. 

It is generally supposed that former times were full of 
barbaric ignorance; and that the system of philosophy 
which is at present in repute, and is established by ex- 
periments, is quite a modern discovery. But nothing 
can be more false than this, as the Bible plainly discovers 
to an attentive reader, that the doctrines of statics, the 
circulation of the blood, the rotundity of the earth, the 
motions of the celestial bodies, the process of genera- 
tion, &c, were all known long before Pythagoras, Archi- 
medes, Copernicus, or Newton was born. 

It is very natural to suppose that God implanted the 
first principles of every science in the mind of his first 
creature ; that Adam taught them to his posterity ; and 
that tradition continued them for many generations with 
their proper improvements. But many of them were 



388 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — KNOWLEDGE. 

lost in consequence of wars, captivities, &c. Latter 
years have rediscovered many of them, principally by 
the direct or indirect aid of the Holy Scriptures ; and 
others of them continue hidden, notwithstanding the 
accurate and persevering 1 researches of the moderns. 

Who taught Newton to ascertain the laws by which 
God governs the universe, through which discovery a 
new source of profit and pleasure has been opened to 
mankind through every part of the civilized world ? No 
reading, no study, no example, formed his genius. 
God, who made him, gave him that compass and bent 
of mind by which he made those discoveries, and for 
which his name is celebrated in the earth. When I see 
Napier inventing the logarithms; Copernicus, Des Cartes, 
and Kepler, contributing to pull down the false systems 
of the universe, and Newton demonstrating the true 
one ; and when I see the long list of patentees of useful 
inventions, by whose industry and skill long and tedious 
processes in the necessary arts of life have been short- 
ened, labour greatly lessened, and much time and ex- 
pense saved ; I then see, with Moses, men who are 
wise-hearted, whom God has filled with the spirit of 
wisdom, for these very purposes, that he might help 
man by man, and that, as time rolls on, he might give 
to his intelligent creatures such proofs of his being, 
infinitely varied wisdom, and gracious providence, as 
should cause them to depend on him, and give him that 
glory which is due to his name. 

The teaching of philosophy, among the ancients, be- 
came the means of the emolument of the teacher; and, 
while they boasted to be free, they themselves were 
the slaves of various evil tempers and passions ; so that it 
was said, with great propriety, of philosophy, or wisdom, 
in its several stages, " Philosophy was impious under 
Diagoras ; vicious under Epicurus ; hypocritical under 
Zeno ; impudent under Diogenes ; covetous under De- 
mochares ; voluptuous under Metrodorus ; fantastical 
under Crates ; scurrilous und-er Menippus ; licentious 
under Pyrrho ; quarrelsome under Cleanthes ; and, at 
last, intolerable to all men." 

The Catholic writers say that St. John Damascenus 
was so zealous for the truth, that he resorted sometimes 
to pious fables to support it. Such conduct in any per- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — KNOWLEDGE. 389 

son leaves the difference very little between saint and 
sinner. The truth has no need of such support : and is 
always injured and rendered suspected when its votaries 
go to Egypt for help. 

In the present age, humane and learned men have 
been endeavouring, so to speak, to find out a royal road 
to geometry : difficulties have been professedly lessened, 
till at last the foundations of science have been laid 
upon the sands. Profound literature is rarely to be met 
with. We have still, it is true, the splendour and bril- 
liancy of gold : but on examination we frequently find a 
mass of inferior metal ; and even the surface, though 
completely covered, yet not deeply gilt 

Our various conflicting and contradictory theories of 
the earth are full proofs of our ignorance, and strong 
evidences of our folly. The present dogmatical systems 
of geology itself are almost the ?ie plus ultras of brain- 
sick visionaries and system-mad mortals. They talk 
as confidently of the structure of the globe, and the 
manner and time in which air was formed, as if they had 
examined every part from the centre to the circumfer- 
ence ; though not a soul of man has ever penetrated two 
miles in perpendicular depth into the bowels of the 
earth. And with this scanty, almost no-knowledge, they 
pretend to build systems of the universe, and blaspheme 
the revelation of God ! Poor souls ! all these things are 
to them " a path which no fowl knoweth." The wis- 
dom necessary to such investigations is out of their 
reach ; and they have not simplicity of heart to seek it 
where it may be found. 

If wisdom means a pursuit of the best end, by the 
most legitimate and appropriate means, the great mass 
of mankind appear to perish without it. But, if we 
consider the subject more closely, we shall find that all 
men die in a state of comparative ignorance. With all 
our boasted science and arts how little do we know ! 
Do we know any thing to perfection that belongs either 
to the material or spiritual world ? Do we understand 
even what matter is ? What is its essence ? Do we 
understand what spirit is ? Then, what is its essence ? 
Almost all the phenomena of nature, its grandest opera- 
tions, and the laws of the heavenly bodies, have been 
explained on the principle of gravitation or attraction : 



390 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — HAPPINESS. 

but in what does this consist? Who can answer 
"We can traverse every part of the huge and trackless 
ocean by means of the compass : but who understands 
the nature of magnetism, on which all this depends ? 
We eat and drink in order to sustain life : but what is 
nutrition 1 and how is it effected ? This has never 
been explained. Life depends on respiration for its 
continuance : but by what kind of action is it, that in a 
moment the lungs separate the oxygen, which is friendly 
to life, from the nitrogen, which would destroy it ; sud- 
denly absorbing the one and expelling the other ? Who, 
among the generation of hypothesis-framers, has guessed 
this out ? Life is continued by the circulation of the 
blood: but by what power and law does it circulate? 
Have the systole and diastole of the heart, on which 
this circulation depends, been ever satisfactorily ex- 
plained? Most certainly not. Alas! we die without 
wisdom ; and must die to know these and ten thousand 
other matters equally unknown and equally important. 
To be safe, in reference to eternity, we must know the 
only true God and Jesus Christ whom he hath sent ; 
whom to know is life eternal. This knowledge, ob- 
tained and retained, will entitle us to all the rest in the 
eternal world. 

HAPPINESS. 

To the soul happiness belongs : of this, it alone is 
capable ; and as it is a spiritual being, the happiness of 
which it is capable must be spiritual, and must be pro- 
duced by the possession, not of an earthly, but of a spi- 
ritual good. A man may have as many houses as he 
can inhabit, as many clothes as he can wear, as many 
beds as he can lie on, and as much food as he can eat 
and, with all, possess sound health and strength ; and 
yet his soul be in misery, while his body has not one 
wish ungratined, nor a single want unsupplied. Like 
may cleave to and assimilate with like. The produc- 
tions of the earth are suited to animal wants : but what 
relation have food, raiment, gold, silver, and earthly 
possessions to an immortal spirit? The abundance of 
them does not satisfy it ; the want of them does not 
distress it. These are not made for soul or spirit ; they 
have nothing in their nature suited to the nature of a 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY HAPPINESS. 391 

spiritual substance. God constituted the body so as to 
receive gratification and support from natural things ; 
and endowed these natural things with such properties 
as render them suitable to those bodies ; but he made 
the soul of a different nature, and designed it a happi- 
ness which no sublunary things can communicate, affect, 
or remove. He gave it unbounded capacities and infi- 
nite desires. I mean by this, that its capacities are not 
limited by created things ; and its wishes extend beyond 
all finite good and excellence. As, therefore, the capa- 
cities of the soul extend far beyond all created material 
good and excellence, God alone must be its portion : he 
alone can satisfy its infinite desires : he alone can make 
it happy. 

It is well, ineffably well, to have a happiness that is 
not affected by the great and many changes to which 
external objects are incident : what a blessing to be able 
to sit calm on the w r heel of fortune, and to prosper in 
the midst of adversity ! 

The soul was made for God; and nothing but God 
can -fill it, and make it happy. Angels could not be 
happy in glory, w T hen they had cast off their allegiance 
to their master. As soon as his heart had departed from 
God, Adam would needs go to the forbidden fruit, to 
satisfy a desire w r hich was only an indication of his 
having been unfaithful to his God. Solomon in his 
glory, possessing every thing heart could wish, found 
all to be vanity and vexation of spirit ; because his soul 
had not God for its portion. Ahab, on the throne 
of Israel, takes to his bed, and refuses to eat bread, not 
merely because he cannot get the vineyard of Naboth ; 
but because he had not God in his heart, who could 
alone satisfy its desires. Haman, on the same ground, 
though the prime favourite of the king, is wretched, 
because he cannot have a bow from that man whom his 
heart even despised. O how distressing are the inquie- 
tudes of vanity ! And how wretched is the man who 
has not the God of Jacob for his help, and in whose 
heart Christ dwells not by faith ! 

Religion is a commerce between God and man; and 
is intended to be the means of re-establishing him in 
that communion with his Maker, and the happiness 
consequent on it, which he has lost by the fall. AH 



392 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY HAPPINESS. 

notions of religion, merely as a system of duties which 
we owe to God, fall, in my apprehension, infinitely 
short of its nature and intention. To the perfection, 
happiness, or gratification of the infinite mind, no crea- 
turccan be necessary. Religion was not made for God, 
but for man. It is an institution of the divine benevolence 
for human happiness. Nor can God be pleased with 
any man's religion or faith but as far as they lead him 
to happiness, that is, to the enjoyment of God ; without 
which there can be no felicity: for God is the source 
of intellectual happiness, and from him alone it can be 
derived ; and in union with him alone it can be enjoyed. 
Animal gratifications may be acquired by means of the 
various matters that are suited to the .senses : but grati- 
fication and happiness are widely different ; the former 
may exist where the latter is entirely unknown. 

God is a spirit, the human soul is a spirit, and the 
happiness suitable to the nature and state of man must 
be spiritual. The soul has infinite desires and wishes ; 
and what can satisfy these wishes must be infinite. God 
alone is that Good ; and in him alone is this happiness 
to be found. 

If it be his will that the happiness lost by sin should 
be restored to believers in Christ, then it is his will 
that they should be made holy. Misery was never known 
till sin entered into the world ; and happiness can never 
be known by any man, till sin be expelled from his soul. 
No holiness, no happiness ; — and no plenary and per- 
manent happiness, without plenary and permanent holi- 
ness. I repeat it, that to give true and permanent 
happiness to believers is the design of that God whose 
name is Mercy, and whose nature is love. 

True happiness consists in the knowledge of God, 
and in obedience to him. A man is not happy because 
he knows much; but because he receives much of the 
divine nature, and is, in all his conduct, conformed to 
the divine will. 

The happiness of a genuine Christian lies far beyond 
the reach of earthly disturbances, and is not affected by 
the changes and chances to which mortal things are 
exposed. The martyrs were more happy in the flames 
than their persecutors could be on their beds of down. 

God is the centre to which all immortal spirits lend, 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — COMMUNION OF SAINTS. 393 

and in connection with which alone they can find rest. 
Every thing separated from its centre is in a state of 
violence ; and, if intelligent, cannot be happy. All 
human souls, while separated from God by sin, are in a 
state of violence, agitation, and misery. From God all 
spirits come ; to him all must return, in order to be 
finally happy. 

I knew a man who is distinguished among many for 
his writings, and who is still living, who thought that 
the saying of Christ, " Love your enemies," and the 
practice upon that saying, was the greatest insult that 
could be offered to human nature. "What!" said he, 
"rob men of those high feelings which are so common 
to them? No !" And then he blasphemed, and I shall 
not repeat his words. We may see whereabouts that 
man was ; and we may be sure that, if a man be a Chris- 
tian, he cannot hate another without being miserable 
while he feels it. God is benevolence, and he forbids 
men to entertain any feelings of malice or ill will toward 
others ; because if they do they cannot be happy. If I 
could hate the devil himself — if I could wish him more 
penal fire, or greater inflictions of God's wrath — I could 
not at that moment love Jesus Christ. 

COMMUNION OF SAINTS. 

A serious public profession of the religion of Christ 
has, in all ages of the church, been considered not only 
highly becoming, but indispensably necessary to salva- 
tion. He who consistently confesses Christ before men 
shall be confessed by him before God and his angels. 
A Jew wore his phylacteries on his forehead, on his 
hands, and around his garments, that he might have 
reverence in the sight of the heathen; he gloried in 
his law, and he exulted that Abraham was his father. 
Christian ! with a zeal not less becoming, and more 
consistently supported, let the words of thy mouth, the 
acts of thy hands, and all thy goings show that thou 
belongest unto God ; that thou hast taken his Spirit for 
the guide of thy heart, his Word for the rule of thy life, 
his people for thy companions, his heaven for thy in- 
heritance, and himself for the portion of thy soul. 
And see that thou hold fast the truth, and that thou hold 
it in righteousness. 

17* 



394 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — COMMUNION OF SAINTS. 

It is not merely sufficient to have the heart right before 
God ; there must be a firm, manly, and public profession 
of Christ before men. 

Be singular. Singularity, if in the right, can never 
be criminal. So completely disgraceful is the way of 
sin, that, if there were not a multitude walking in that 
way, who help to keep each other in countenance, every 
solitary sinner would be obliged to hide his head. 

A religious profession, supported by a consistent 
walk, produces both reverence and respect even in the 
wicked. And even while they ridicule religion, they 
will put confidence in its professors, credit their words, 
and employ their services, in preference to all others. 
How forcible are right words ! What a pity that all 
the professors of religion were not at all times faithful 
to their trust, and consistent in their conduct ! How 
would infidelity and vice lose their glorying;, and the 
faith and hope of the gospel everywhere triumph ! But 
alas ! how few are clear in this matter ! O God, mend 
thy church and thy ministers. 

The genuine Christian is holy ; — and happy, because 
holy : he not only lives an innocent life, but he lives a 
useful life — he labours for the welfare of society ; and 
the peace of God keeps and rules his heart. He lives 
to grow wiser and better, and he misses not his aim. In 
affliction he is patient and submissive; in adversity his 
confidence in God is unshaken ; in death he has no 
fears, because Christ dwells in his heart by faith : he 
overcomes his last enemy, and finally triumphs, Satan 
himself being beat down under his feet ; and having 
overcome, he sits down with Christ on his throne, as he, 
having overcome, is sat down with the Father upon the 
Father's throne. Thus, then, his salvation on earth 
issues in an eternal weight of glory. 

We may be said to give glory to God when we ex- 
hibit in the clearest light, and in the most impressive 
manner we can, the various excellences of our God and 
Father; and when we do this so that by our example 
others are led to esteem, adore, and put their trust in 
him, we glorify him by showing forth the glory of his 
various attributes — telling forth how effectually he 
teaches, how powerfully he upholds, how mercifully he 
saves, and how kindly he supplies all our wants, sue- 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY COMMUNION OF SAINTS. 395 

cours us in distress, stands by us in difficulties, defends 
us in dangers, guides us by his counsel, and promises at 
last to receive us into his endless glory. 

"Confess your faults one to another." This is a good 
general direction to Christians who endeavour to main- 
tain among themselves the communion of saints. This 
social confession tends much to humble the soul, and to 
make it watchful. We naturally wish that our friends in 
general, and our religious friends in particular, should 
think well of us ; and when we confess to them offences 
which, without this confession, they could never have 
known, we feel humbled, are kept from self-applause, 
and induced to watch unto prayer, that we may not in- 
crease our offences before God, or be obliged any more 
to undergo the painful humiliation of acknowledging 
our weakness, fickleness, or infidelity to our religious 
brethren. 

It is not said, "Confess your faults to the elders that 
they may forgive them, or prescribe penance in order to 
forgive them." No ; the members of the church were to 
confess their faults to each other ; therefore auricular 
confession to a priest, such as is prescribed by the 
Romish Church, has no foundation in this passage. In- 
deed, had it any foundation here, it would prove more 
than they wish ; for it would require the priest to con- 
fess his sins to the people, as well as the people to con- 
fess theirs to the priest. 

"And pray one for another." There is no instance 
in auricular confession where the penitent and the priest 
pray together for pardon ; but here the people are com- 
manded to pray for each other, that they may be healed. 

Without the communion of saints, w r ho is likely to 
make a steady and consistent Christian, even though his 
conversion should have been the most sincere and the 
most remarkable ? 

He who frequents the company of bad or corrupt men 
will soon be as they are. He may be sound in the 
faith, and have the life and power of godliness, and at 
first frequent their company only for the sake of their 
pleasing conversation, or their literary accomplishments ; 
and he may think his faith proof against their infidelity ; 
but he will soon find, by means of their glozing speeches, 
his faith weakened ; and when he once gets under the 



396 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY FASTING, CONSCIENCE. 

empire of doubt, unbelief will soon prevail ; his bad 
company will corrupt his morals; and the two dry logs 
will soon burn up the green one. 

FASTING. 

In all countries, and under all religions, fasting has 
not only been considered a duty, but also of extraordi- 
nary virtue to procure blessings, and to avert evils. 
Hence it has often been practised with extraordinary 
rigour, and abused to the most superstitious purposes. 

Among the Hindoos there are twelve kinds of fasts. 

Fasting is considered by the Mohammedans as an 
essential part of piety. Their orthodox divines term it 
" the gate of religion." With them it is of two kinds, 
voluntary and incumbent. 

When a man fasts, suppose he do it through a reli- 
gious motive, he should give the food of that day from 
which he abstains to the poor and hungry, who, in the 
course of Providence, are called to sustain many invo- 
luntary fasts, beside suffering general privations. Wo 
to him who saves a day's victuals by his religious fast ! 
He should either give them or their value in money to 
the poor. 

CONSCIENCE. 

Conscience is defined by some, " that judgment which 
the rational soul passes on her own actions ;" and is a 
faculty of the soul itself, and consequently natural to it. 
Others say, "It is a ray of the divine light." Milton 
calls it " God's umpire;" and Dr. Young seems to call 
it "a God in man." To me it appears to be no other 
than a faculty of the mind, capable of receiving light and 
information from the Spirit of God ; and is the same to 
the soul in spiritual matters, as the eye is to the body in 
the things which concern vision. The eye is not light 
in itself, nor is it capable of discerning any object but 
by the instrumentality of natural or artificial light. But 
U has organs properly adapted to the reception of the 
rays of light, and the various images of the objects 
which they exhibit. When these are present to an eye, 
the structure of which is perfect, then there is discern- 
ment or perception of those objects which are within the 
sphere of vision : but when the light is absent there is 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CONSCIENCE. 397 

no perception of the figure, dimensions, situation, or 
colour of any object, howsoever entire or perfect the 
optic nerves may be. In the same manner, comparing 
spiritual things with natural, the Spirit of God en- 
lightens that eye of the soul which we call conscience: 
it penetrates it with its effulgence, and, speaking as hu- 
man language will permit on the subject, it has organs 
properly adapted for the reception of the Spirit's ema- 
nations, which when received into the conscience exhibit 
a real view of the situation, state, &c, of the soul as it 
stands in reference to God and eternity. Thus the 
Scripture says, " The Spirit itself beareth witness with 
our spirits :" that is, it shines into the conscience, and 
reflects, throughout the soul, a conviction proportioned, 
to the degree of light communicated, of condemnation, 
pardon, or acquittance, according to the end of its 
coming. 

Conscience is sometimes said to be good, — bad,- — ten- 
der, — seared; good, if it acquit or approve; bad, if it 
condemn or disapprove ; tender, if alarmed at the least 
approach of evil, and is severe in scrutinizing the various 
operations of the mind and passions, as well as the ac- 
tions of the body; and seared, if it no longer act thus, 
the Spirit of God being grieved that its light is no longer 
dispensed, and conscience no longer passes judgment on 
the actions of the man. These epithets can scarcely 
belong to it, if the common definition be admitted ; but, on 
the general definition already given, these terms are easily 
understood, and are exceedingly proper ; for instance, a 
good conscience is that to which the Spirit of God has 
brought intelligence of the pardon of all the sins of the 
soul, and its reconciliation to God through the blood of the 
covenant; and this good conscience, retained, implies 
God's continual approbation of such a person's conduct. 
A bad or evil conscience is that which records a charge 
of guilt brought against the soul by the Holy Spirit, on 
account of the transgression of God's holy law ; the 
light of that, Spirit showing the soul the nature of sin, 
and its own guilty conduct. A tender conscience is that 
which is fully irradiated by the light of the Holy Spirit, 
which enables the soul to view the good as good, the 
evil as evil, in every important respect ; and, conse- 
quently, leads it to abominate the latter and cleave to 



398 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CONSCIENCE. 

the former ; and, if at any time it act in the smallest 
measure opposite to those views, it is severe in self- 
reprehension, and bitter in its regrets. A darkened, 
seared, or hardened conscience is that which has little 
or none of this divine light; the soul having by re- 
peated transgressions so grieved the Spirit of God, that 
it has withdrawn its light, in consequence of which, the 
man feels no remorse, but goes on in repeated acts of 
transgression, unaffected either by threatenings or pro- 
mises ; and careless about the destruction which awaits 
it; this is what the Scriptures mean by the " conscience 
being seared as with a hot iron ;" that is, by repeated 
transgressions, and resisting of the Holy Ghost. The 
word conscience itself vindicates the above explanation : 
it is compounded of con, " together or with," and scio, 
" I know ;" because it knows, or combines with, by or 
together with, the Spirit of God. 

From the above, I think we may safely make the fol- 
lowing inferences: — 1. All men have what is commonly 
termed conscience, and conscience plainly supposes the 
influence of the divine Spirit in it, convincing of sin, 
righteousness, and judgment. 2. The Spirit of God is 
given to enlighten, convince, strengthen, and bring men 
back to God, and fit them for glory by purifying their 
hearts. 3. Therefore all men may be saved who attend 
to and coincide with the convictions and light commu- 
nicated ; for the God of the Christians does not give 
men his Spirit to enlighten, that is, merely to leave them 
without excuse ; but that it may direct, strengthen, lead 
them to himself, that they may be finally saved. 4. That 
this Spirit comes from the grace of God, is demonstrable 
from hence : it is a good and perfect gift ; and St. 
James says, " All such come from the Father of lights." 
Besides, it is such a grace as cannot be merited ; for, as 
it is God's Spirit, it is of infinite value ; yet it is given. 
That, then, which is not merited, and yet is given, must 
be of grace, not condemning or ineffectual grace, for no 
such principle comes from or resides in the Godhead. 

Thus it appears that all men are partakers of the 
grace of God ; for all acknowledge that conscience is 
common to all; and this implies, as I hope has been 
proved, the Spirit of grace given by Christ Jesus, not 
that the world might be hereby condemned, but that it 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — CONSCIENCE. 399 

might be saved. Nevertheless, multitudes who are par- 
takers of this heavenly gift, sin against it, lose it, and 
perish everlastingly ; not through any defect in the gift, 
but through the abuse of it. 

It is dangerous to trifle with conscience, even when 
erroneous ; it should be borne with and instructed ; it 
must be won over, not taken by storm. Its feelings should 
be respected, because they ever refer to God, and have 
their foundation in his fear. He who sins against his 
conscience, in things which every one else knows to be 
indifferent, will soon do it in those things in which his 
salvation is most intimately concerned. It is a great 
blessing to have a well informed conscience ; it is a 
blessing to have a tender conscience ; and even a sore 
conscience is infinitely better than none. 

Persons of an over tender and scrupulous conscience 
may be very troublesome in a Christian society ; but as 
this excessive scrupulosity comes from want of more 
light, more experience, or more judgment, we should 
bear with them. Though such should often run into 
ridiculous extremes, yet we must take care that we do 
not attempt to cure them either with ridicule or wrath. 
Extremes generally beget extremes ; and such persons 
require the most judicious treatment, else they will soon 
be stumbled and turned out of the way. We should be 
very careful lest, in using what is called Christian liberty, 
we occasion their fall ; and for our own sake we must 
take heed that we do not denominate sinful indulgences 
"Christian liberties." 

" We are verily guilty." How finely are the office and 
influence of conscience exemplified in these words (of 
Joseph's brethren !) It was about twenty-two years since 
they had sold their brother, and probably their conscience 
had been lulled asleep to the present hour. God combines 
and brings about those favourable circumstances which 
produce attention and reflection, and give weight to the 
expostulations of conscience. How necessary to hear its 
voice in time ! for here it may be the instrument of 
salvation ; but if not heard in this world, it must be 
heard in the next ; and there, in association with the 
unquenchable fire, it will be the never dying worm. 
Reader, has not thy sin as yet found thee out ? Pray to 
God to take away the veil from thy heart, and to give 



400 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — DANCING. 

thee that deep sense of guilt which shall oblige thee to 
flee for refuge to the hope which is set before thee in 
the gospel of Christ. 

DANCING. 

Dancing was to me a perverting influence, an un 
mixed moral evil ; for although, by the mercy of God, 
it led me not to depravity of manners, it greatly weak- 
ened the moral principle, drowned the voice of a well 
instructed conscience, and was the first cause of 
impelling me to seek my happiness in this life. Every 
thing yielded to the disposition it had produced, and 
every thing was absorbed by it. I have it justly in 
abhorrence for the moral injury it did me ; and I can 
testify, (as far as my own observations have extended, 
and they have had a pretty wide range,) I have known 
it to produce the same evil in others that it produced in 
me. I consider it, therefore, as a branch of that 
worldly education which leads from heaven to earth, 
from things spiritual to things sensual, and from God 
to Satan. Let them plead for it who will ; I know it 
to be evil, and that only. They who bring up their 
children in this way, or send them to those schools where 
dancing is taught, are consecrating them to the service 
of Moloch, and cultivating the passions, so as to cause 
them to bring forth the weeds of a fallen nature, with 
an additional rankness, deep-rooted inveteracy, and 
inexhaustible fertility. Nemo sobrius salt at, "No man 
in his senses will dance," said Cicero, a heathen : 
shame on those Christians who advocate a cause by 
which many sons have become profligate, and many 
daughters have been ruined ! 

After so fatal an example of this, (the beheading of 
John the Baptist,) can we doubt whether balls are not 
snares for souls ; destructive of chastity, modesty, and 
sometimes even of humanity itself; and a pernicious 
invention to excite the most criminal passions ? How 
many on such occasions have sacrificed their chastity, 
and then, to hide their shame, have stifled the human 
being and the parent, and, by direct or indirect means* 
have put a period to the innocent offspring of their con- 
nections ! " Unhappy mother who exposes her daughter 
to the same shiowreck herself has suffered, and makes 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY DRESS. 401 

her own child the instrument of her lust and revenge !" 
Behold here, ye professedly religious parents, the fruits 
of what was doubtless called in those times, " elegant 
breeding and accomplished dancing." " Fix your eyes 
on that vicious mother, that prostituted daughter, and 
especially on that murdered ambassador of God, and 
then send your children to genteel boarding schools, to 
learn the accomplishment of dancing." 



If St. Paul saw the manner in which Christian wo- 
men now dress, and appear in the ordinances of religion, 
what would he think? What would he say? How 
could he ever distinguish the Christian from the infidel ? 
And if they who are in Christ are new creatures, and 
the persons who ordinarily appear in religious assem- 
blies are really new creatures (as they profess in general 
to be) in Christ, he might reasonably inquire : " If 
these are new creatures, what must have been their 
appearance when they were old creatures ?" Do we 
dress to be seen ? And do we go to the house of God 
to exhibit ourselves ? Wretched is that man or woman 
who goes to the house of God to be seen by any but 
by God himself. 

When either women or men spend much time, cost, 
and attention on decorating their persons, it affords a 
painful proof that within there is little excellence, and 
that they are endeavouring to supply the want of mind 
and moral good by the feeble and silly aids of dress and 
ornament. Were religion out of the question, common 
sense would say in all these things, " Be decent ; but 
be moderate and modest." 

The wife of Phocion, a celebrated Athenian general, 
receiving a visit from a lady who was elegantly adorned 
with gold and jewels, and her hair with pearls, took 
occasion to call the attention of her guest to the elegance 
and costliness of her dress, remarking at the same time, 
" My ornament is my husband, now for the twentieth 
year general of the Athenians." How few Christian 
women act this part ! Women are in general at as much 
pains and cost in their dress as if by it they were to be 
recommended both to God and man. It is, however, in 



402 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — DRESS. 

every case, the argument either of a shallow mind, or 
of a vain and corrupted heart. 

Simplicity reigned in primitive times ; natural orna- 
ments alone were then in use. Trade and commerce 
brought in luxuries ; and luxury brought pride, and all 
the excessive nonsense of dress. No female head ever 
looks so well as when adorned with its own hair alone. 
This is the ornament appointed by God. To cut it off, 
or to cover it, is an unnatural practice ; and to exchange 
the hair which God has given for hair of some other 
colour, is an insult to the Creator. How the delicacy 
of the female character can stoop to the use of false 
hair, and especially when it is considered that the chief 
part of this kind of hair was once the natural property 
of some ruffian soldier who fell in battle by many a 
ghastly wound, is more than I can possibly comprehend. 

It will rarely be found that women who are fond of 
dress, and extravagant in it, have any subjection to their 
husbands but what comes from mere necessity. Indeed, 
their dress, which they intend as an attractive to the 
eyes of others, is a sufficient proof that they have nei- 
ther love nor respect for their own husbands. Let them 
who are concerned refute the charge. 

Should not the garments of all those who minister in 
holy things still be emblematical of the things in which 
they minister? Should they not be for glory and beauty, 
expressive of the dignity of the gospel ministry, and 
that beauty of holiness without which none can see the 
Lord 1 As the high priests' vestments, under the law, 
were emblematical of what was to come, should not the 
vestments of the ministers of the gospel bear some re- 
semblance of what is come? Is then the dismal black, 
now worn by almost all kinds of priests and ministers, 
for glory and for beauty ? Is it emblematical of any 
thing that is good, glorious, or excellent? How unbe- 
coming the glad tidings announced by Christian ministers, 
is a colour emblematical of nothing but mourning and 
wo, sin, desolation, and death ! How inconsistent the 
habit and office of these men ! Should it be said, " These 
are only shadows, and are useless because the substance 
is come :" I ask, " Why, then, is black almost univer- 
sally worn ? why is a particular colour preferred, if 
there be no signification in any? Is there not a danger 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY DREAMS. 403 

that, in our zeal against shadows, we shall destroy or 
essentially change the substance itself?" Would not the 
same sort of argumentation exclude water in baptism, 
and bread and wine in the sacrament of the Lord's sup- 
per 1 The white surplice in the service of the church is 
almost the only thing that remains of those ancient and 
becoming vestments which God commanded to be made 
for glory and beauty. Clothing, emblematical of office, 
is of more consequence than is generally imagined. 
Were the great officers of the crown, and the great officers 
of justice, to clothe themselves like the common people 
when they appear in their public capacity, both their 
persons and their decisions would be soon held in little 
estimation. 

DREAMS. 

Dreams have been on one hand superstitiously re- 
garded, and on the other, skeptically disregarded. That 
some are prophetic, there can be no doubt ; that others 
are idle, none can hesitate to believe. Dreams may be 
divided into the six following kinds : — 1. Those which 
are the mere nightly result of the mind's reflections and 
perplexities during the business of the day. 2. Those 
which spring from a diseased state of the body, occa- 
sioning startings, terrors, &c. 3. Those which spring 
from an impure state of the heart, mental repetitions of 
those acts or images of illicit pleasure, riot, and excess, 
which form the business of a profligate life. 4. Those 
which proceed from a diseased mind, occupied with 
schemes of pride, ambition, grandeur, &c. These, as 
forming a characteristic conduct of the life, are repeat- 
edly reacted in the deep watches of the night, and 
strongly agitate the soul with illusive enjoyments and 
disappointments. 5. Those which come immediately 
from Satan, which instil thoughts and principles opposed 
to truth and righteousness, leaving strong impressions 
on the mind suited to its natural bent and turn, which, 
in the course of the day, by favouring circumstances, 
may be called into action. 6. Those which come from 
God, and which necessarily lead to him, whether pro- 
phetic of future good or evil, or impressing holy pur- 
poses and heavenly resolutions. Whatever leads away 
from God, truth, and righteousness, must be from the 



404 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY GHOSTS. 

source of evil ; whatever leads to obedience to God, and 
to acts of benevolence to man, must be from the Source 
of goodness and truth. Reader, there is often as much 
superstition in disregarding as in attending to dreams; 
and he who fears God will escape it in both. 

GHOSTS. 

The story of the disturbances at the parsonage-house 
in Epworth is not unique. I myself, and others of my 
particular acquaintances, were eye and ear witnesses of 
transactions of a similar kind, which could never be 
traced to any source of trick or imposture ; and appeared 
to be the forerunners of two very tragical events in the 
disturbed family; after* which no noise or disturbance 
ever took place. 

A philosopher should not be satisfied with reasons 
advanced by Dr. Priestley. He who will maintain his 
creed in opposition to his senses, and the most undis- 
guised testimony of the most respectable witnesses, had 
better at once, for his own credit's sake, throw the whole 
story in the region of doubt, where all such relations, 
no matter how authenticated, 

" Upwhirl'd aloft, 
Fly o'er the backside of the world far off, 
Into a limbus large and broad." 

And instead of its being called " the paradise of fools," 
it may be styled " the limbus of philosophic material- 
ists ;** into which they hurry whatever they cannot com- 
prehend, choose not to believe, or please to call super- 
stitious and absurd. And they treat such matters so, 
because they quadrate not with principles unfounded on 
the divine testimony, feebly supported by true philoso- 
phy, and contradictory to the plain unbiassed good com- 
mon sense of nineteen-twentieths of all the inhabitants 
of the earth.* 

TOBACCO. 

Every medical man knows well that the saliva 
which is so copiously drained off by the infamous quid 

* For many interesting particulars relative to the disturbances 
at Epworth. I must refer 'the reader to Dr. Clarke's "Memoirs of 
the Wesley Family."— S. D. 



CHRISTIAN THE0L06Y — TOBACCO, 405 

and the scandalous pipe is the first and greatest agent 
which nature employs in digesting the food. 

But is the elegant snuffbox as dangerous as the pipe 
and the quid ? Let us hear evidence. " The least-evil," 
says Mr. D. Bomare, ■" which you can expect it to pro- 
duce, is to dry up the brain, emaciate the body, enfeeble 
the memory, and destroy, if not entirely, yet in a large 
measure, the delicate sense of smelling." This has 
been noticed and deplored in the case of many eminent 
men who have addicted themselves to this destructive 
practice 

The most delicate females have their complexion en- 
tirely ruined by it. Strange ! that the snuffbox should 
be deemed too great a sacrifice for that for which most 
people are ready to sacrifice every thing beside ! Many 
cases have been observed where the appetite has been 
almost destroyed, and a consumption brought on, by the 
immoderate use of this powder. 

• I heartily wish the corporation of surgeons, and ana- 
tomists in general, would procure as many bodies of 
habitual smokers and snuff-takers as possible, that, being 
dissected, we might know how far that ever to be dreaded 
evil prevails, which J. Borrhi says happened to the brain 
of an immoderate smoker, which, on dissection, was 
found dried and shrivelled up by his excessive use of the 
pipe. 

A person of my acquaintance, who had been an im- 
moderate snuff-taker for upward of forty years, was 
frequently afflicted with a sudden suppression of breath- 
ing, occasioned by a paralytic state of the muscles which 
serve for respiration. These affections grew more and 
more alarming, and seriously threatened her life. The 
only relief she got in such cases was from a cup of cold 
water poured down her throat. This became so neces- 
sary to her, that she could never venture to attend even 
a place of public worship without having a small vessel 
of water with her, and a friend at hand to administer it. 
At last she left off snuff: the muscles reacquired their 
proper tone ; and, in a short time after, she W-as entirely 
cured of a disorder occasioned solely by her attachment 
to the snuffbox, and to which she had nearly fallen a 
victim. 

A single drop of the chemical oil of tobacco being put 



406 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — TOBACCO. 

on the tongue of a cat, produced violent convulsions, and 
killed her in the space of one minute. A thread dipped 
in the same oil, and drawn through a wound made by 
a needle in an animal, killed it in the space of seven 
minutes. Indeed, the strong caustic oil and acrid salt 
which are contained in it, must produce evil effects 
beyond calculation. 

That it is sinful to use it as most do, I have no doubt, 
if destroying the constitution, and vilely squandering 
away the time and money which God has given for other 
purposes, may be termed " sinful." 

I have observed some whole families, and very poor 
ones too, who have used tobacco in all possible ways, 
and some of them for more than half a century. Now, 
supposing the whole family, consisting of four, five, or 
six, to have used but Is. 6d. worth in a week, then, in 
the mere article of tobacco, nearly 200Z. sterling is 
totally and irrecoverably lost in the course of fifty years. 
Were all the expenses attending this business enume- 
rated, probably five times the sum in several cases would 
not be too large an estimate ; especially if strong drink, 
its general concomitant, neglect of business, and appro- 
priate utensils be taken into the account. Can any who 
profess to call themselves Christians vindicate their 
conduct in this respect ? 

But the loss of time in this shameful work is a serious 
evil. I have known some who, strange to tell, have 
smoked three or four hours in the day, by their own 
confession ; and others who have spent six hours in the 
same employment. How can such persons answer for 
this at the bar of God ? " But it is prescribed to me 
by a physician." No man who values his character as 
a physician will ever prescribe it in this way. 

I grant that a person who is brought under the domi- 
nion of the pipe or the snuffbox, may feel great uneasi- 
ness in attempting to leave it off, and get some medical 
man, through a false pity, or for money, to prescribe the 
continued use of it : but this does not vindicate it ; and 
the person who prescribes thus is not to be trusted. He 
is either without principle or without skill. 

The impiety manifested by several in the use of this 
herb merits the most cutting reproof. When many of 
the tobacco consumers get into trouble, or under any 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — TOBACCO. 407 

cross or affliction, instead of looking to God for support, 
the pipe, the snuffbox, or the twist, is applied to with 
quadruple earnestness ; so that four times (I might say 
in some cases ten times) the usual quantity is consumed 
on such occasions. What a comfort is this weed in 
time of sorrow ! what a support in time of trouble ! In 
a word, what a god ! 

Again : the interruption occasioned in places of pub- 
lic worship by the use of the snuff box, is a matter of 
serious concern to all those who are not guilty. When 
the most solemn and important matters relative to God 
and man, eternal glory and eternal ruin, form the sub- 
ject of a preacher's discourse, whose very soul is in his 
work, it is no unusual thing to see the snuff box taken 
out, and officiously handed about to half a dozen of 
persons on the same seat. 

To the great scandal of religious people, the abomi- 
nable customs of snuff taking and chewing have made 
their way into many congregations, and are likely to be 
productive of great evil. Churches and chapels are 
most scandalously abused by the tobacco chewers who 
frequent them ; and kneeling before the supreme Being, 
which is so becoming and necessary when sinners ap- 
proach their Maker in prayer, is rendered in many seats 
impracticable, because of the large quantity of tobacco 
saliva which is ejected in all directions. 
• Some indeed have been so candid as to acknowledge 
that, "though they do not use it as such, yet they take 
it as a help to their devotions." O earth, earth, earth ! 
"I cannot," says one, "hear to any advantage without 
it ; it quickens my attention, and then I profit most by 
the sermon." I am inclined to think there is some truth 
in this ; and such persons exactly resemble those who 
have habituated themselves to frequent doses of opium ; 
who, from the w r ell known effect of too free a use of this 
drug, are in a continual torpor, except for a short time 
after each dose. They are obliged to have constant 
recourse to a stimulant, which, in proportion to its use, 
increases the disease. 

Such persons as these are unfit to appear in the house 
of God. This conduct sufficiently proves that they are 
wholly destitute of the spirit of piety, and of a sense of 
their spiritual wants, when they stand in need of such 



408 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY TOBACCO. 

excitements to help their devotion. He can have no 
pity for the wretched who does not lift up his soul in 
prayer to God in behalf of such miserable people. 

But are not many led into the practice of smoking- by 
their pastors. I am sorry to have it to say, that this 
idle, disgraceful custom prevails much at present among 
ministers of most denominations. Can such persons 
preach against needless self-indulgence, destruction of 
time, or waste of money ? These men greatly injure 
their own usefulness ; they smoke away their ministerial 
importance in the families where they occasionally visit ; 
the very children and maid servants pass their jokes on 
the piping parson; and should they unluckily succeed 
in bringing over the uninfected to their vile custom, the 
evil is doubled. I have known serious misunderstand- 
ings produced in certain families, where the example of 
the idle parson has influenced a husband or wife, against 
the consent of the other, to adopt the use of the pipe or 
the snuffbox. 

Some are brought so much under the power of this 
disgraceful habit, that they must have their pipe imme- 
diately before they enter the pulpit. What a prepa- 
ration for announcing the righteousness of God, and 
preaching the gospel of our Lord Jesus ! Did St. Paul 
do any thing like this 1 " No," you say, " for he had 
the inspiration of the Holy Spirit." Then you take it 
to supply the place of this inspiration ! How can such 
persons smile at their own conduct? " Be ye followers 
of us as we are of Christ Jesus," can never proceed out 
of their mouths. On such characters as these pity would 
be misplaced ; they deserve nothing but contempt. 

Should all other arguments fail to produce a reforma- 
tion in the conduct of tobacco consumers, there is one 
which is addressed to good breeding and benevolence, 
which, for the sake of politeness and humanity, should 
prevail. Consider how disagreeable your custom is to 
those who do not follow it. An atmosphere of tobacco 
effluvia surrounds you whithersoever you go. Every 
article about you smells of it ; your apartments, your 
clothes, and even your very breath. Nor is there a 
smell in nature more disagreeable than that of stale 
tobacco, arising in warm exhalations from the human 
body, rendered still more offensive by passing through 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — TOBACCO. 409 

the pores, and becoming strongly impregnated with that 
.noxious matter which was before insensibly perspired. 

To those who are not yet incorporated with the 
fashionable company of tobacco consumers, I would 
say, " Never enter." To those who are entered, I 
would say, " Desist, first, for the sake of your health, 
which must be materially injured, if not destroyed, by 
it. Secondly. For the sake of your property, which, 
if you are a poor man, must be considerably impaired 
by it. But, supposing you can afford this extra ex- 
pense ; consider how acceptable the pence (to go no 
farther) which you spend in this idle, unnecessary em- 
ployment would be to many, who are often destitute of 
bread, and to whom one penny would sometimes be as 
an angel of God ! Thirdly. For the sake of your time, 
a large portion of which is irreparably lost, particularly 
in smoking. Have you any time to dispose of, to mur- 
der ? Is there no need of prayer, reading, study? 
Fourthly. For the sake of your friends, who cannot fail 
to be pained in your company, for the reasons before 
assigned. Fifthly. For the sake of your voice, which 
a continuance in snuff-taking will infallibly ruin, as the 
nasal passages are almost entirely obliterated by it. 
Sixthly. For the sake of your memory, that it may be 
vigorous and retentive ; and for the sake of your judg- 
ment, that it may be clear and correct to the end. 
Lastly. For the sake of your soul. Do you not think 
that God will visit you for your loss of time, waste of 
money, and needless self-indulgence ? Have you not 
seen that the use of tobacco leads to drunkenness ? Do 
you not know that habitual smokers have the drinking 
vessel often at hand, and frequently apply to it ? Nor 
is it any wonder ; for the great quantity of necessary 
moisture which is drawn off from the mouth, <fec, by 
these means, must be supplied by some other way. 
You tremble at the thought. Well you may ; for you 
are in great danger. May God look upon and save you 
before it be too late !" 

Some of the most disagreeable things relative to the 
practice against which I have been writing, are still 
behind the curtain ; and designedly detained there; and 
it is there alone where I wish every persevering 
smoker to seek for a certain vessel, named the spitting 

18 * ° 



410 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — WESLEY. 

dish, which, to the abuse of all good breeding, and the 
insult of all delicate feeling, is frequently introduced 
into public company. May they and their implements, 
while engaged in this abominable work, be ever kept 

OUT OF SIGHT ! 

WESLEY. 

On the return of Mr. Wesley and his brother Charles 
from America, being both fervent in spirit, they power- 
fully proclaimed repentance toward God, and faith in 
our Lord Jesus Christ ; and strongly insisted on the 
necessity of being born again, and of having the witness 
of God's Spirit with theirs, that they were thus born of 
God. At first, all the churches in London were open to 
them ; and the people flocked together to see and hear 
two weather-beaten missionaries, whose skin appeared 
as if tanned by their continual exposure to the suns and 
winds of summer and winter on the continent of Ame- 
rica. God attended their preaching with the power and 
demonstration of the Holy Ghost. Multitudes were 
turned from darkness to light, and from the power of 
satan unto God ; and many obtained that faith in Christ 
by which the guilt of sin was removed, and the fear of 
death taken away ; and had the Spirit of God witnessing 
with theirs, that they were the sons and daughters of 
God Almighty. The crowds that attended the churches 
where they preached were so great, that the clergy 
thought it proper to refuse them any farther use of their 
pulpits ; and hence, being turned out of these, they went 
to the highways and hedges to compel sinners to come 
to the marriage feast. For as they had sufficiently 
learned that nothing but the gospel could be the power 
of God unto salvation to them that believe, they boldly 
and zealously proclaimed Christ crucified wherever 
they found a crowd of sinners ; using extempore prayer, 
and preaching without notes. This seemed a new thing 
in the earth ; and while many were awakened and 
turned to God, several, who did not think that such ex- 
traordinary exertions were necessary, ridiculed their 
zeal \ and others, who imagined God could not give his 
approbation to any kind of spiritual service that was 
not performed within the walls of a church, became 
greatly offended : and it is a fact that not a few opposed 
and blasphemed. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — METHODISM. 411 



METHODISM. 

An itinerant ministry established in these kingdoms 
for upward of fourscore years, teaching the pure una- 
dulterated doctrines of the gospel, with the propriety 
and necessity of obedience to the laws, has been the 
principal means, in the hand of God, of preserving these 
lands from those convulsions and revolutions that have 
ruined and nearly dissolved the European continent. 
The itinerant ministry to which this refers, is that w r hich 
was established in these lands by the late truly reverend, 
highly learned and cultivated, deeply pious, and loyal 
John Wesley, A. M., formerly a fellow of Lincoln Col- 
lege, Oxford ; whose followers are known by the name 
of Methodists ; a people who are an honour to their 
country, and a blessing to the government of their most 
excellent and revered king, George III. ; who, through 
a long reign, has been the patron of religion and learn- 
ing, and the father of his people. 

The following declaration was inserted in an album, 
by Dr. Clarke, during the last conference which he 
attended, exactly one month before his death : — 

in perpetuam rei memoriam. 

I have lived more than threescore years and ten ; I 
have travelled a good deal, both by sea and land ; I have 
conversed with and seen many people, in and from dif- 
ferent countries ; I have studied the principal religious 
systems in the world ; I have read much, thought much, 
and reasoned much ; and the result is, I am persuaded 
of the simple, unadulterated truth of no book but the 
Bible ; and of the true excellence of no system of reli- 
gion but that contained in the Holy Scriptures ; and 
especially Christianity, which is referred to in the 
Old Testament, and fully revealed in the New. And 
while I think well of, and wish well to, all religious 
sects and parties, and especially to all who love our 
Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity, yet, from a long and tho- 
rough knowledge of the subject, I am led, most consci- 
entiously, to conclude that Christianity itself, as existing 
among those called Weslevan Methodists, is the purest, 



412 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — METHODISM. 

the safest, that which is most to God's glory and the 
benefit of man ; and that, both as to the creed there 
professed, form of discipline there established, and the 
consequent moral practice there vindicated. And I be 
lieve that among them is to be found the best form and 
body of divinity that has ever existed in the church of 
Christ, from the promulgation of Christianity to the 
present day. To him who would say, " Doctor Clarke, 
are you not a bigot ?" without hesitation I would answer, 
" No, I am not ; for, by the grace of God, I am a 
Methodist!" Amen. 

Adam Clarke. 
Liverpool, July 26^, 1832, 

"London, May \bih, 1824. 
" My Dear Sammy, — Our friends here have all agreed' 
to hold the * centenary of Mr. Wesley's ordination to 
the sacred ministry.' He was ordained by Bishop 
Potter, Sept. 19, 1725 ; so the centenary will be on Sept. 
19, 1825, when you will have returned from Shetland to 
the Bristol conference. Two services will be on that 
day ; and two papers will be prepared for each preacher to 
read after his sermon : that in the forenoon shall contain 
an abstract of Mr. Wesley's life, call to the ministry, 
and success in it : that in the evening, an epitome of our 
doctrines and discipline : after each service a collection 
to be made, in order to build what probably may be 
called, 'the Wesleyan Hall,' for the purpose of holding 
all our public meetings, accommodating the missionary 
committee, having rooms for a museum of foreign curi- 
osities or antiquities sent home by the missionaries, and 
one for a public library, besides offices for the enrol- 
ment of our chapel deeds, registers of baptisms, &c, 
&c. This building, which we calculate on holding six 
or eight thousand persons, is to be erected as near the 
centre of the city as we can ; and to be paid for by the 
money collected through all our circuits and stations at 
home and abroad, and by a previous subscription. The 
project arose from Mr. Butterworth ; was proposed, 
considered, agreed on, and methodized in the mission- 
ary committee ; then a select number of friends were 
invited to breakfast together at the morning chapel, 
by a note signed by Mr. Butterworth and myself 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — SHETLAND. 413 

About one hundred came : the project was received 
with enthusiasm, and 2,400/. were almost instantly sub- 
scribed ! I send you this as the principal news we now 
have.* 

" Ever your affectionate brother, 

"Adam Clarke." 

SHETLAND. 
QUESTIONS! RELATIVE TO THE SHETLAND ISLANDS. 

I. — Islands and their Productions. 

1. What is their number? present names ? original 

names, and the meaning of such in the Norse or 
Danish language? 

2. What is the soil ? clayey — gravelly — peat, &,c. What 

its general depth ? 

3. What is the basis of each? Basalt rock — granite — 

clay, or marl ? 

4. Metals and minerals. — Any gold, silver, copper, or 

lead found in them ? in what quantities ? and how 
and where found ? any quartz — fluor-^— chalcedony 
— arragonite — barytes — or any other ? and which ? 

II. — Grain, Seeds, fyc. 

1. What grain is cultivated 1 wheat, oats, barley, rye? 

2. How do they cultivate their ground ? What sort is 

their manure, and how applied to produce the dif- 
ferent crops ? 

3. When do they sow their wheat, oats, rye, &c, and 

plant their potatoes ? 

4. Potatoes. — Of what kinds, colours, size, and quality ? 

When do they plant, and when dig up ? How much 
of each is sown or planted per acre, and what is the 

* As the above project was not carried into execution, it is hoped 
that the year 1839, the centenary of the establishment of the Wes- 
leyan Methodist Society, will not pass without services somewhat 
similar to those mentioned by the doctor. The collections, and 
the objects to which the moneys shall be applied, are but secondary 
considerations. — S. D. 

t What answers were given to these questions it is not necessary 
for the reader to know. The letter is inserted as a curiosity ; and 
as likely to be of use to other missionaries in different parts of the 
world. The success of the mission to the islands may be learned 
from the letters and journals published in the Weslevan Methodise 
tzine since 1832.— S. D. 



414 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — SHETLAND. 

produce ? that is, how many bushels per acre, to 
one sown or planted on the different soils ? 
6. Is there any flax or hemp sown ? How are they pre- 
pared for the wheel and loom, and into what species 
of cloth are they manufactured ? 

III. — Horticulture and Planting. 

1. Gardens. — What pulse, beans, peas, the sorts, their 

time in the ground ? carrots, parsnips, turnips ? &c. 
What remarkable herbs and flowers ? 

2. Orchards. — What fruit? apples, pears, plums, goose- 

berries, currants? &c. What size and quality? 
What are their various kinds, and how used ? 

3. Plants. — What sorts ? Are there any peculiar to the 

isles ? meadow grass, of what sorts ? clover, trefoil, 
lucerne, florin, &c. 

4. Forest trees. — Fir, ash, elm, any plantations? Of 

what kinds, extent, and where ? 

5. What underwood, hazel, furs, or whins; juniper or 

other berries on the moors ? 

IV.— Fish. 
1. Shell-fish. — Oysters, muscles, razor-fish, pearl oys 

ters, crabs, lobsters, limpets, cockles ? <fec. 
% Fish in the seas. — Porpoise, whale, shark, dog-fish, 

cod, ling, salmon, herring, haddock, gurnet, conger, 

mackerel, sparling? 

3. How are the fish cured for winter there, such as sal- 

mon, cod, ling, herring ? 

4. Shoals of fish. — Of what kinds ? when do they ap- 

pear, whence do they come, and whither do they 
go? &c. 

5. Pearls from the oysters, or muscles. — Of what shape, 

colour, and size? How used, vended, or manu- 
factured ? 

V. — Fowls. 

1. Wild fowl. — Geese, ducks, barnacles, gulls, grouse, 

pheasants, partridges, cuckoos, wrens, snipes, cur- 
lews, woodcocks, and birds of passage in general? 
Of what kinds ? When do they usually appear and 
disappear ? 

2. Poultry. — Geese, ducks, hens, pigeons, turkeys ? Of 

what size, and of what advantage to the inhabitants! 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — SHETLAND. 415 

VL— Beasts. 

1. Of what sorts are the cattle? — Cows, what colour, 

size, what milk per diem, and how much butter from 
a given quantity of milk ? Horses ? size, colours, 
strength ? &c. Shetland poney, describe. 

2. Sheep. — What size ; their wool, of what quality ? 

Do they often bring forth twins ? What is the 
time of shearing? How many pounds of wool 
off each ? 

3. Goats. — How used 1 Do they run at large, or are 

they tethered ? Are they kept principally for breed 
or milk ? 

4. Dogs and cats. — Size, colour, propensities ? any 

thing remarkable in their form or qualities ? 

5. Wild beasts. — Deer, foxes, badgers, pole cats, hares, 

rabbits, otters, weasels, squirrels ? &c. 

6. Winter provender for horses, cows, sheep, goats ?&c. 

VII. — Inhabitants. 

1. Inhabitants. — Size, colour, features, hair? Any 

thing peculiar in the formation of the head, mouth, 
nose, feet, and legs ? Describe the general make 
both of the men and women. 

2. Dispositions. — Phlegmatic or choleric, close or in- 

genuous? 

3. Are there thefts ? Of what kinds ? 

4. In their manners. — Are they cruel, morose, kind to 

strangers, litigious, apt to quarrel ? 

VIII.— Food, $c. 

1. Food for the different seasons of the year. — What 

sorts, and how dressed? any thing peculiar in 
their mode of cooking? the usual time of their 
meals, and what the proportion of time allotted for 
sleep ? 

2. Beverage. — Ale, spirits, metheglin, or mead? Is 

there a great consumption of tea, ardent spirits, and 
tobacco ? 

3. Clothing. — Of what kinds ? names and forms of their 

habits ? 

4. Fuel. — Coal, peat, or turf, dry sea-weed, wood, bog, 

fir? &c. 



416 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY SHETLAND. 

IX. — Implements. 

1. Agricultural. — What sort of ploughs, harrows, 
spades, scythes, sickles ? What the harness of 
the horses X 

% Carts or cars. — What sort of wheels? For what 
uses? Construction. — Is it good, light, or clumsy? 

3. Domestic utensils. — Their names, figure, &c, of 

wood, tin, iron, brass, clay? 

4. Houses. — How constructed ? Of what materials, 

cabins, windows, chimneys, offices ; or outhouses, 
stables, bouveries, or byars ; sheep and pig cotes ; 
separate or together ? 

X. — Women and Children. 

1. Women. — How are they treated? how employed? 

good housewives ; cleanly ? Do they often pro- 
duce twins ? 

2. Children. — How are they nursed and educated? 

Does bastardy prevail? 

XI.— Trades, <Sf>c. 

1. Trades, manufactures, and commerce. — What im- 

ported and exported, and with whom ? 

2. Domestic economy.— Spinning, knitting, sewing, 

weaving ? 

3. Day labourers. — What is their pay ? How many 

hours do they work ? servants, male and female ? 
What their yearly wages ? Are they active, sloth- 
ful, faithful, cleanly ? &c. 

XII. — Vices, Pastimes. 

1. What vices are most prevalent among them? 

2. Sports and pastimes. — What ? when practised ; their 

names, and how performed? 

3. Traditions — Relative to their own origin, the ex- 

ploits of their forefathers ? tales ; legends ; what 
sorts ? any of the tales of Ossian, Oscar, Ullin, Fin 
M'Cuol Odo, or any of the Scandinavian chiefs ? 

4. Weapons of defence. — Guns, swords, dirks, bows, 

targets ; any old armour, or coins found in the 
isles? 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — SHETLAND. 417 

XIII. — Religion. 

1. Religion. — Generally prevalent? creed or notions, 

form of public worship ? 

2. Religious ordinances. — When, and how conducted ? 

Lord's day well observed? family worship any, or 
general ? 

3. Ministers. — How supported? by tithes, stipends, free- 

will offerings? &c. 

4. Schools. — Classical, commercial, or merely English; 

or the language of the place ? 

5. Are they naturally fond of learning? Can most of 

them read ? 

6. Are the families you visit well supplied with Bibles ? 

7. What are the books used in education generally? 

Of what sort of reading do they appear to be most 
fond? 

XIV. — Language and Polite Literature. 

Jr. What is the prevalent language ? What was the 
original tongue ? Do any words of it still remain 
mixed with their present speech ? 

2. As the people were originally Scandinavians, or 

Norwegians, how came they to lose their native 
language ? Where and how did the English lan- 
guage enter, and generally supplant the original 
tongue? 

3. How are the winter evenings spent ? While some 

work, do others tell tales, repeat legends ? &c. 

4. Are the people fond of poetry, music, dancing? <fec. 

5. What are their musical instruments? 

XV. — Popular Superstitions. 

1. Holidays. — Religious customs, or rites on midsum- 
mer, All Saints, or All Hallows even? Christmas, 
Candlemas, Easter ? 

% Superstitions. — Charms, incantations, observations 
of the clouds, flight of birds, crowing of cocks at 
unusual times ? about demons, fairies, brownies, 
wraiths, or appearances portending death ; second 
sight ; death watch ; knockings ? &c. 
18* 



418 CHRI8TIAN THEOLOGY SHETLAND. 

XVI. — Population, Diseases, §c. 

1. Longevity. — Do they live in general to a good old 

age? its general duration? 

2. Proportion of males to females ? 

3. Diseases. — Of children ; adults ? What kinds pre- 

vail most? popular methods of cure? deaths, wakes, 
burials ? &c, and attendant circumstances ? 

XVII. — Laws, Courts of Justice, <Src. 

1. Any thing peculiar in their civil customs, laws, couits 

of justice, and punishments? 

2. Lawyers, physicians, quack doctors ? Are there many 

such in the islands? 

XVIII. — Phenomena. 

1. The aurora borealis, or " northern lights." — When 

do they appear? in winter only? what time of the 
evening do they commence ? Describe their ap- 
pearance, and how long they last. Do they com- 
pensate for the shortness of the days ? 

2. What is the common opinion of their origin ? 

3. Tides. — Any thing remarkable in them? when 

greatest? 

4. Seasons. — Winter, summer, autumn, spring ? When 

do they begin, and how long continue ? 

5. Weather. — What are the signs of approaching good 

or bad? snow, rain, frost, winds, any remarkable 
sign in the heavens ? and from what do the country 
people draw their prognostications ? 

6. Does the magnetic needle suffer agitations, singular 

variations in its traversing, or in its dip, during the 
prevalence of the aurora borealis 1 Or does the 
atmosphere then show any peculiar signs of elec- 
tricity ? 

XIX. — Letting of Lands, Rents, Tenures, fyc. 

1. How are lands let? What sort of tenures prevail? 
Have any of the farmers freeholds, copyholds, 
leases for a term of years, or for lives, or of a mixed 
nature ? 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY' SHETLAND. 419 

2. How do they pay their rents? in money, in kind, by 
•service? Are there any feudal services, or boons 
to the landlords ? 

XX. — Taxation, Civil and Religious Contracts, SfC. 

1. What are the principal taxes and customs ? 

2. Are the people generally contented with their form 

of government ? attached to the house of Bruns- 
wick or Stuart? 

3. Does clanship prevail among them ? Of what cha- 

racter are their chiefs ? proud, haughty, kind, 
benevolent? 

4. Marriages.— Dowries, wedding feasts, bringing home 

the bride, or in-fare? what the customs or cere- 
monies? 

5. Christenings and weanings. — Any peculiar ceremonies 

or festivals on the occasion ? 

XXI. — Miscellaneous Questions. 

1. Any accounts of marine monsters, mermen, mermaids, 

craken, or kraken, sea snake? 

2. Are there any remarkable ruins, temples, druidical 

monuments, churches, ancient fortresses ? and in 
what form ? 

3. Any inscriptions, Runic, Oghams, Celtic? &c. 

N. B. Answers of a certain kind to many of the pre- 
ceding questions may be obtained from travellers, 
historians, &c. But these generally copy each other, 
and are not to be much regarded. I wish you there 
fore to see with your own eyes, and hear with your own 
ears; and to answer from knowledge and fact. Look 
at nature and practice as they lie before you : but when 
obliged to relate any thing from the testimony of 
others, see that the testimony be credible ; and gene- 
rally give the reasons upon which your own conviction 
is built? 

Poor Shetland, I have worked hard for thee ; many 
a quire, many a ream of paper have I written to describe 
thy wants, and to beg for supplies ; and several thou- 
sands of miles have I travelled in order to raise those 
supplies which by letters I had solicited for thee. It is 



420 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY SUNDAY SCHOOLS. 

now " almost done, and almost over." May God raise 
thee up another friend, that will be, if possible, more 
earnest and faithful, and at the same time more suc- 
cessful ! And now I may say, May the Holy Trinity 
be the incessant Friend, O my poor Shetland ! Amen. 

SUNDAY SCHOOLS. 

The amazing success of Sunday schools has nearly 
annihilated the proverb, " A young saint, an old devil ;" 
as we find in all directions both men and women, whe- 
ther wives and husbands, or masters and servants, walk- 
nig in all the ordinances and commandments of God 
unblamably, who were brought to an acquaintance with 
God, when little children, at such schools; whose piety 
never forsook them, but has carried them on through 
most of the troublesome and trying relations of life ; till, 
now past their meridian, their sun is growing brighter and 
broader toward its setting, having before shone more and 
more to its perfect day. Nor do I know a Sunday school 
in the nation, under the direction of godly teachers, that 
has not been crowned with instances of this kind, and 
that has not had the satisfaction of registering the true 
Scriptural conversion and happy deaths of several of its 
pupils. When these results have been so numerous, and 
satisfactorily witnessed, we need not wonder that pious 
parents have been encouraged to cultivate their children's 
minds with more assiduity than formerly ; looking to God 
to bless their endeavours, by pouring light upon the minds 
of their little ones, and peace and love into their hearts. 
Everywhere the most blessed fruits of such labour are 
seen ; and we safely aver, that infant salvation is as 
frequent now as that of adults was a century ago ; 
while the latter are in a tenfold ratio to what they have 
been, within the memory, at least, of the present gene- 
ration. And it is not unfrequent that what formerly began 
at the greatest, and went down to the least, (at the 
parents, descending from them to their children,) now, 
in many cases, takes a contrary direction ; as I have 
myself known many instances where little children at a 
pious Sunday school, having been brought to the true 
knowledge of salvation by faith, have become instru- 
ments in the hand of God of converting their parents. 
Some years ago the spirit of infidelity laboured hard to 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MISCELLANEOUS. 421 

prevent all religious instruction to children. " Leave 
them to themselves," said this spirit of error ; " do not 
prepossess their minds with religious notions and reli- 
gious creeds ! Bias them not ; and when they come to 
age let them choose for themselves ; and then we shall 
have religion without superstition." This has been tried, 
alas ! in numerous cases ; and the neglected child has 
found it more rational — that is, more according to the 
unfettered sinful bias of his own mind — to be a skeptic 
or an infidel than to believe with the orthodox ; or, to 
perform an easy set of moral duties, with the careless 
and the unawakened, being at ease in Zion, and trusting 
in the mountains of their Samaria. 

SCHISM. 

Schism in religion is a dangerous thing, and should 
be carefully avoided by all who fear God. But this 
word should be well understood. In theology, it is 
generally allowed to signify "a rent in, or departure 
from the doctrine and practice of the apostles ; espe- 
cially among those who had been previously united in 
that doctrine and practice." A departure from human 
institutions in religion is no schism ; for this reason, 
that the word of God alone is the sufficient rule of the 
faith and practice of Christians ; and as to human insti- 
tutions, forms, modes, &c, those of one party may be 
as good as those of another. 

LUST OF POWER. 

What a truly diabolic thing is the lust of power ! It 
destroys all the charities of life, and renders those who 
are under its influence the truest resemblants of the 
arch fiend. 

POLITICAL PARTY SPIRIT. 

Party spirit, especially in political matters, is the 
great disgrace and curse of England. This spirit 
knows no friend ; feels no obligation ; is unacquainted 
with all dictates of honesty, charity and mercy ; and 
leaves no stone unturned to ruin the object of its hate. 
We have elections by law no more than once in seven 
years ; and the mischief that is then done to the moral 
character of the nation is scarcely repaired in the sue- 



422 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MISCELLANEOUS. 

ceeding seven. All the charities of life are outraged 
and trampled under foot by it ; common honesty is not 
heard, and lies and defamation go abroad by wholesale. 
The rascal many catch the evil reports which the op- 
posed candidates and their committees spread of each 
other, and the characters of the best men in the land are 
wounded, and lie bleeding till slow-paced oblivion can- 
cels the remembrance of the transactions which gave 
them birth. 

FRIENDSHIP. 

Poor friendship ! it has been so kicked about in the 
world, that it has now become a complete cripple, and 
will go halting usque ad Grczcas Calendas. However, 
in all its wanderings, it is always sure of a night's lodg- 
ing with us; and seems quite at home under our roof; 
and declares, and I suppose with sincerity, that our 
house is one of the very few out of which it has 
never been turned, and where it can always confidently 
expect entertainment. It and myself have never had 
any misunderstanding ; and having grown old together, 
we are resolved to keep on good terms. It has often 
interested itself on my behalf; and though it has fre- 
quently been unsuccessful, yet, knowing its sincerity, I 
have taken the good will for the successful deed, and 
have still kindly taken it in, with all those whom it has 
recommended. Some of these look well, and speak 
comfortably, and are full of good resolutions and pro- 
fessions ; but a disposition to take offence so universally 
prevails, that several of them take themselves off with- 
out any previous warning ; and others, after going out, 
linger a little at the door, and talk and look as usual : 
but every day I find them progressively farther off, till 
at last the distance is such that I cannot hear them, 
though they seem still to speak ; and in time they get 
entirely out of sight! Nothing remains of them in our 
house but the name, with a scroll, in my own hand- 
writing, under each: "Whenever thou art disposod 
to return, thou wilt find here the same welcome as 
formerly. " 

I can say I never formed a friendship which I broke. 
My list of friends has not a blot in it ; some of them, it 
is true, have slunk away ; some seem to have hurried 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MISCELLANEOUS, 423 

off, and others stand at a great distance ; but I have 
made no erasure in my list, and when they choose to 
return, it can never appear, by reinsertion that they 
have proved false to their friend, or have been careless 
about him. 

Multitudes complain of the treachery of friends, be- 
traying their secrets, <fec, never considering that they 
themselves have been their first betrayers, in confiding 
to others what they pretend to wish should be a secret 
to the whole world ! If a man never let his secret out 
of his own bosom, it is impossible that he should ever be 
betrayed. 

FLATTERY. 

Men who praise you to your face are ever to be sus- 
pected. The Italians have a very expressive proverb on 
this subject : " He who caresses thee more than he was 
wont to do, has either deceived thee, or is about to do 
it." I have never known the sentiment in this proverb 
to fail. 

SELF-INTEREST. 

A man is to be suspected when he recommends those 
good works most from which he receives most advan- 
tage. Self-interest is a most decisive casuist, and re- 
moves abundance of scruples in a moment. It is always 
the first consulted, and the most readily obeyed. It is 
not sinful to hearken to it, but it must not govern nor 
determine by itself. 

GOING TO LAW. 

" Debate thy cause with thy neighbour." Take the 
advice of friends. Let both sides attend to their coun- 
sels : but do not tell the secret of thy business to any. 
After squandering your money away upon lawyers, both 
they and the judge will at last leave it to be settled by 
twelve of your fellow citizens ! O the folly of going to 
law ! O the blindness of men and the rapacity of 
lawyers ! 

One Christian sues another at law ! This is almost 
as great a scandal as can exist in a Christian society. 
Those in a religious community who will not submit to 
a proper arbitration, made by persons among themselves, 
should be expelled from the church of God. 



424 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MISCELLANEOUS. 



SURETYSHIP. 



If thou pledge thyself in behalf of another, thou takest 
the burden off him, and placest it on thy own shoulders. 
And when he knows that he has got one to stand be- 
twixt him and the demands of law and justice, he will 
feel little responsibility ; his spirit of exertion will be- 
come crippled, and listlessness as to the event will take 
place. His own character will suffer little; his pro- 
perty nothing, — for his friend bears all the burden : 
and perhaps the very person for whom he bore this bur- 
den treats him with neglect ; and, lest the restoration 
of the pledge should be required, will avoid both the 
sight and presence of his friend. Give what thou canst ; 
but, except in extreme cases, be surety for no man. 



USURY. 

" He that by usury increaseth his substance." — By 
taking unlawful interest for his money ; lending to a 
man in great distress money, for the use of which he 
requires an exorbitant sum. O that the names of all 
those unfeeling, hard-hearted, consummate villains in 
the nation, who thus take advantage of their neighbour's 
necessities to enrich themselves, were published at every 
market-cross ; and then the delinquents all sent to their 
brother savages in New Zealand ! It would be a happy 
riddance to the country. 

SLAVERY. 

" Men stealers." — Slave dealers ; whether those who 
carry on the traffic in human flesh and blood ; or those 
who steal a person in order to sell him into bondage ; 
or those who buy such stolen men or women, no matter 
of what colour or what country ; or those who sow dis- 
sensions among barbarous tribes in order that they who 
are taken in war may be sold into slavery ; or the na- 
tions who legalize or connive at such traffic : all these 
are men stealers, and God classes them with the most 
flagitious of mortals. 

I here register my testimony against the unprincipled, 
inhuman, Antichristian, and diabolical slave trade, with 
all its authors, promoters, abettors, and sacrilegious 
gains; as well as against the great devil, the father of 
it and them. 



CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MISCELLANEOUS. 425 

PARABLE. 

A parable is a comparison or similitude, in which one 
thing is compared with another, especially spiritual 
things with natural, by which means these spiritual 
things are better understood, and make a deeper im- 
pression on an attentive mind. 

miracle. 

I mean, by miracle, something produced or known, 
that no power is capable of but that which is omnipo- 
tent, and no knowledge adequate to but that which is 
omniscient. The conversion of one rebellious soul is a 
greater miracle, and more to be admired, than all that 
can be wrought on inanimate creatures. 

MILLENNIUM. 

What disappointment and confusion have been 
brought into the minds of many, by calculations relative 
to the termination of certain empires, Papal and Turk- 
ish ; the beast and the false prophet ; Christ's second 
coming to establish a universal empire, the laws of 
which are to be administered by his presence, corpo- 
really manifested on earth ; and also concerning the 
time of the final judgment, and the end of the world ! 
When a fancy is pursued, the line of pursuit is only 
directed by a sort of telegraphic phantoms, unreal land- 
marks to unreal objects ; and when the last ignis fatuus 
has terminated its uncertain dance by absorption in some 
other vapour by which it has been neutralized, we are 
left in sudden darkness, in the quagmire where all such 
mental aberrations must necessarily end ; and thus pro- 
phecy is prostituted ; faith and hope (improperly em- 
ployed) are disappointed ; and religion itself discredited. 

It is truly an astonishing thing that men will prefer 
hope to enjoyment ; and rather content themselves with 
blessings in prospect than in possession ! 

Thousands, in their affections, conversation, and con- 
duct, are wandering after an undefined and indefinable 
period, commonly called a millennial glory, while ex- 
pectation is paralyzed, and prayer and faith restrained in 
reference to present salvation : and yet none of these 
can tell what even a day may bring forth ; for we now 



426 CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY — MISCELLANEOUS. 

stand on the verge of eternity, and, because it is so, 
" now is the accepted time, and now is the day of 
salvation." 

TIME. 

Buy up those moments which others seem to throw 
away ; steadily improve every present moment, that ye 
may, in some measure, regain the time ye have lost. 
Let time be your chief commodity ; deal in that alone ; 
buy it all up, and use every portion of it yourselves. 
Time is that on which eternity depends ; in time ye are 
to get a preparation for the kingdom of God ; if you get 
not this in time, your ruin is inevitable ; therefore buy 
up the time. 



THE END. 



(427) 



' * 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



Abbot, the Right Honourable 
Charles, 22. 

Abraham, tent of, 232 ; prayer of, 
240. 

Achan, punished for covetousness, 
224. 

Adam, entailed corruption upon 
his descendants, 95. 

Adonai, explained, 65. 

Adoption, explained, 144 ; a Ro- 
man custom, ib. 

Adoration, explained, 226. 

Adultery, forbidden, 218. 

Afflictions, all men subject to, 350 ; 
advantages of, 353. 

Album, lines written in an, 385. 

Alphabetical characters, when in- 
vented, 210. 

America, North, savage tribes of, 
idolatrous, 21 1. 

Anarchy, explained, 285. 

Ancestors, our rude, the power or 
strength of the divine nature, 
the attribute principally contem- 
plated by, 72. 

Angel of the Covenant, personal 
appearance of, 55. 

Angels, ministry of, 56, 340 ; not 
made in the image of God, 85. 

Antediluvians, 99. 

Antinomianism, 141, 143. 

Apostacy, causes of, 362 ; degrees 
of, ib. ; every believer in danger 
of, ib. ; consequences of, ib. 

A posteriori arguments to prove 
the being of God, 63. 

Apostolic uninterrupted succession, 
a fable, 302. 

A priori arguments to prove the 
being of God, 63. 

Archimedes, 387. 

Arminius, works of, 42. 

Aristocracy, explained, 284 

Ascension of Christ, 120. 



Asia Minor, received the gospel, 

50. 
Assyrians, destitute of the know 

ledge of God, 96. 
Atonement of Christ, necessary, 

115; extent of, 117. 
Attributes of God, 66 ; perfect 

unity and harmony among the, 78. 
Audible voice, revelation given by, 

56. 
Augustin, Saint, a story of, 225. 
Augustine, archbishop of Tarra- 
gon, the liberality of, 314. 
Autocracy, explained, 284. 
Ava, the followers of Budhoo, in, 

214. 



B 



Baal, adored by the Canaanites, 
72 ; pleaders for, 195. 

Babel-builders, 62. 

Backbiters, 220, 223. 

Backsliding, seeAposTACV. 

Badcock, Mr., 157. 

Baptism, the mode of, 253, 254 ; 
little children are proper subjects 
for, ib. ; proselytes to the Jew- 
ish religion received, 255 ; typi 
cal of the descent of the Holy 
Ghost, ib. 

Barrow, Dr. Isaac, 42. 

Bates, Rev. Eli, 43. 

Baxter, " Saints' Everlasting 
Rest," of, 33. 

Bayley, Dr. C, Hebrew Grammar 
by, 37. 

Bell, Greek Grammar by, 38. 

Bellerophon, 72. 

Benevolence, 168, 170. 

Bennett, Mr. F., 11, 12. 

Benson, Rev. Joseph, 19. 

Bentley, Professor, 21. 

Bibliographical Dictionary, Dr. 
Clarke's, 20, 42. 

Bigots, 142, 174. 



428 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



Bill trade, the, 220. 

Blasphemy, forbidden, 211. 

Blood, circulation of, 387. 

Bodies of Divinity, 131 ; danger 
of, 329. 

Bookseller, a, 278. 

Boyd, H. S. Esq., Essay by, on 
the Greek article, 381. 

Boyle, the Hon. Robert, 298. 

Bradburn, Rev. Samuel, 19. 

Bradford, (Wilts.) Circuit, 13. 

Brainerd, David, journal of, re- 
commended, 33. 

British history, 38; constitution, 
286. 

Butterworth, Joseph, Esq., 17, 
473. 

Bythner's Lyra Prophetica, 38. 



Cain, defeat of, 228. 

Caley, John, Esq., 23. 

Cathedral windows, painting on, 
228. 

Cesars, the first, under them that 
the preaching of the gospel took 
place, 53. 

Celibacy, a bad state, 264. 

Censoriousness, 175. 

Centenary of Mr. Wesley's ordina- 
tion, 472. 

Ceylon, the followers of Budhoo, 
in, 211. 

Chaldeans, destitute of the know- 
ledge of God, 96. 

Chambers' Cyclopcedia, 16. 

Children, a spirit of inquiry, com- 
mon to, 267 ; should be early 
instructed, 268 ; piety of, why 
formerly so rare, 269 ; what 
they should be taught, ib. ; busi- 
ness for, 277 ; Christ loves, 
279 ; providential deliverances 
of, 280 ; duties of, to their pa- 
rents, ib. 

China, the visible heavens wor- 
shipped in, 211. 

Christ, a fountain of light and sal- 
vation, 53 ; never wrote himself 
but once, ib. ; begins where the 
law ends, 61'; the grand object 



of the whole sacrificial code, 62 ; 
without him no human spirit can 
come into the presence of its 
Judge, 80 ; divinity of, 106 ; 
creation his work, ib. ; eternity 
of, 108 ; omnipotence of, ib. ; 
omnipresence of, 109 ; omni- 
science of, 110 ; object of wor- 
ship, ib. ; incarnation of, ib. ; 
why a man, ib. ; offices of, 112 ; 
a philosopher, moralist, and di- 
vine, ib. ; shone on the world at 
the conclusion of the fourth mil- 
lenary from the creation, 113; 
compassion of, ib. ; atonement 
of, necessary, 115, 117; his 
agony inexplicable if the atone- 
ment be denied, 116 ; death of, 
ib. ; his fear of death a widely 
different thing from what it is in 
man, 117. ; grace of, shines out 
upon all, ib. ; resurrection of 
120 ; ascension of, ib. ; interces- 
sion of, 121 ; righteousness of, 
139 ; flock of, 142 ; the ambas- 
sador of the Father, 157; the 
medium of prayer, 236. 
Christian, the genuine, 394. 
Christianity, rapid spread of, 49, 
355 ; differs from philosophic 
systems, 53 ; from popular tra- 
dition, ib. ; from Pagan and Mo- 
hammedan revelations, ib. ; mado 
its appearance under the first 
Cesars, ib. ; in Judea, 54 ; chal- 
lenges the Roman government, 
ibid. 
Church, Christian, founded in Je- 
rusalem, 49 ; constitution of the, 
250, 251 ; the extension of the, 
252 ; officers of the, 297 ; du- 
ties of the members of the, 331. 
Chymist, a, 277, 278. 
Clarke, Dr. Adam, birth of, 7 ; 
parents of, ib. ; merciful recove- 
ry of, from the small pox, ib. ; 
education of, 8 ; memory of, 
suddenly enlightened, ib. ; the 
subject of early religious impres- 
sions, ib. ; reproved for disobe- 
dience to his mother, 9 ; learns 
music and dancing, ib. ; hears 



INDEX TO CHRlSriAN THEOLOGY. 



429 



the Methodist preachers, ib. ; 
conversion of, 10 ; receives great 
intellectual enlargement, ib. ; 
professions for which he was de- 
signed, 11 ; is sent to Mr. F. 
Bennett, a linen merchant, ib. ; 
had two narrow escapes from 
sudden death, ib. ; officiates at 
family worship, ib. ; his rela- 
tions become hearers of the Me- 
thodists, ib. ; goes six miles to 
meet a class, ib. ; begins to ex- 
hort in the surrounding villages, 
12 ; removes from Colerain, ib. ; 
is urged by Mr. Bredin to take 
a text, ib. ; preaches his first 
sermon at New Buildings, ib. ; 
directed by Mr. Wesley to come 
to Kingswood, 13; the treat- 
ment he met with while there, 
ib. ; is sent to the Bradford 
(Wilts.) circuit, 14; a circum- 
stance which nearly proved ru- 
inous to all his attainments in 
literature, ib. ; ceases to drink 
tea or coffee, ib. ; is appointed 
to the Norwich circuit, ib. ; to 
St. Austell, 15; his character 
of Samuel Drew, ib. ; his popu- 
larity, ib. ; is appointed to Ply- 
mouth Dock, 16 ; to the Norman 
Isles, ib. ; reads Walton's Poly- 
glot Bible, ib. ; has several re- 
markable deliverances, ib. ; his 
marriage, 17; is appointed to 
Bristol, ib. ; to Dublin, ib. ; 
forms the Stranger's Friend So- 
ciety, 18 ; is overwhelmed with 
grief on hearing of the death of 
Mr. Wesley, ib. ; his opinion of 
Mr. Wesley, ib. ; Mr. Wesley's 
opinion of, 19 ; is appointed to 
Manchester, his health in a very 
declining state, ib. ; goes to 
Buxton, and is completely re- 
stored, ib. ; is appointed to Li- 
verpool, ib. ; Mrs. Pawson's 
opinion of, ib. ; narrowly escapes 
assassination, 20 ; commences 
authorship, ib. ; his father's 
death, ib. ; publishes Sturm's Re- 
flections, a Bibliographical Dic- 



tionary, a succinct Account of 
Polyglot Bibles, and of the prin- 
cipal editions of the Greek Tes- 
tament, 21 ; is chosen president 
of the Liverpool and Manchester 
Philological Society, ib. ; pub- 
lishes Fleury's Manners of the 
Ancient Israelites, and Baxter's 
Christian Directory, ib. ; be- 
comes a contributor to the Ec- 
lectic Review, ib. ; is elected 
president of the conference, 22 ; 
renders the British and Foreign 
Bible Society important assist- 
ance, ib. ; publishes his Concise 
View of the Succession of Sa- 
cred Literature, ib. ; is presented 
with the diplomas of a. m: and 
ll. d., ib. ; is appointed sub- 
commissioner of the public re- 
cords of the kingdom, 23 ; be- 
comes librarian of the Surrey In- 
stitution, ib. ; publishes a short 
account of the last illness and 
death of the learned Porson, ib. ; 
projects a new edition of the 
London Polyglot Bible, 24 ; is- 
sues his Commentary, ib. ; pub- 
lishes a missionary address, ib. ; 
removes to Millbrook, ib. ; 
makes a tour through part of 
Scotland and Ireland, ib. ; takes 
charge of two high priests of 
Budhoo, 25 ; becomes m. r. i. a., 
ib. ; commences an acquaintance 
with the duke of Sussex, 26 ; 
chosen president of the confe- 
rence for the third time, ib. ; 
takes great interest in the Shet- 
land mission, ib. ; visits the Isles, 
27 ; removes to Haydon-hall, 
ib. ; establishes schools in Ire- 
land, ib. ; is present at the death 
of R. Scott, Esq., ib. ; receives 
an invitation to visit America, 
28 ; attends the conference in 
Liverpool, 30 ; seized with cho- 
lera morbus, 31 ; death of, ib. ; 
personal appearance of, 32 ; cha- 
racter of, ib. ; Mr. Moore's tes- 
timony to, 34; attachment to 
Methodism of, ib., 472; mode 



430 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



of preparing for the pulpit, 39 ; 
preaching of, 40 ; prayers of, 41 ; 
writings of, 42 ; Commentary of, 
41, 63 ; literary honours of, 45 ; 
letter from, on imputed right- 
eousness, 141 ; Memoirs of the 
Wesley family, by, 267 ; prayer 
of, for his daughter, 276 ; letter 
to a preacher, by, 292. 

Clarke, Mrs., 17, 26. 

Clarke, Rev. J. B. B., 22, 36. 

Coffee, never used by Dr. Clarke, 
14. 

Collections, how to be made, 171. 

Commandments, the ten, 209. 

Communion of saints, 393. 

Company, the danger of bad, 395. 

Confession of faults, ib. 

Confidence, the danger of self, 363. 

Conscience, definition of, 396 ; 
plainly supposes the influence of 
the divine Spirit, 398 ; danger- 
ous to trifle with, 399. 

Contentions, to be avoided, 175. 

Conversion, explained, 148. 

Copernicus, 387. 

Covetousness, forbidden, 224. 



D 



Damascenus, Saint John, the 

means he employed to support 

the truth, 388. 
Dancing, the influence of, on Dr. 

Clarke, 9 ; time spent in, 275, 

400. 
David, introduced instruments of 

music into God's service, 247. 
Dawson, Greek lexicon by, 38. 
Death, sin the cause of, 368 ; all 

men naturally fear, ib. ; nearness 

of, ib. ; death refines nothing, ib. 
Decades, time divided into, by the 

French national assembly, 215. 
Decree of God, not that unborn 

souls shall be cut off from the 

possibility of salvation, 79. 
Deists never able to convert one 

soul, 298. 
Democracy, explained, 284. 
Demoniacal influence, a doctrine of 

the Bible, 342. 



Demons, can tempt no farther than 

as permitted by God, 362. 
Des Cartes, 388. 
Despair, 176. 
Despotism, explained, 284. 
Detractors, 220, 222. 
Devil, the, see Satan. 
Dii Majores, of the heathens, 74. 
Dishonesty, forbidden, 219. 
Drawing, time spent in, 275. 
Dreams, revelation given in, 56 ; 

six kinds of, 403. 
Dress, the folly and sin of gay and 

expensive, 401. 
Drew, Samuel, 15. 
Druggist, a, 278. 
Drunkenness, forbidden, 218. 
Duellists, all, are murderers, 218. 
Dunn, Samuel, letters to, 23, 24, 

26, 28, 36, 41, 42, 44, 412. 



Earth, no disorders in, before the 
fall, 89 ; now under the curse, 
93. 

Education, defined, 267. 

Egyptians, destitute of the know- 
ledge of God. 96. 

Eli, too indulgent to his sons, 273. 

Elohim, signification of the word, 
81 ; man the work of, 88. 

Emblematical appearances, revela- 
tion given by, 56. 

England, Sabbath broken in, 216. 

Enoch, character of, 199. 

Erasmus, how convinced of the 
doctrine of the sacred Trinity, 
82. 

Eternity of God, 69. 



Faith, definition of, 129, 136; ne- 
cessary to salvation, ib. ; com- 
manded by God, 130 ; the act 
of, man's own, ib. ; should be 
exercised the present moment, 
131 ; encouragement to, ib. ; un- 
necessary difficulties in the way 
of, ib. ; little in action, 131 ; 
one of the wiles of the devil to 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



43! 



persuade man that the exercise 
of this grace is almost impossible 
without a miraculous power, 132 ; 
the want of, strange and dis- 
graceful, ib. ; volunteers in, ib. ; 
conveys the virtue of Christ into 
the soul, 133 ; disregards appa- 
rent impossibilities, ib. ; seems 
to put the power of God into 
the hands of men, ib. ; many are 
looking for more without using 
that which they have, ib. ; weak 
faith wishes for signs and mira- 
cles, ib. ; Christ should be cre- 
dited on his own word, ib. ; de- 
grees in, ib. ; an increase of, ib. ; 
why so rarely exercised, 134 ; 
lives by love, ib. ; produces god- 
ly living, ib. ; will enter into 
eternal glory, 135 ; objects of, 
in heaven, ib. 

Faithfidncss of God, 80. 

Farindon, Anthony, 42. 

Fasting, immoderate and super- 
stitious, murder, 217 ; the duty 
of, 396. 

Fear, filial, not cast out of the soul 
by perfect love, 173. 

Flattery, suspicious, 423. 

Fletcher, Rev. John, works of, re- 
commended, 33. 

French, National Assembly of the, 
divided time into decades, 215 ; 
revolution of the, 19. 

Friendship, mentioned, 422. 

Foreigner, the saying of a, 216. 

Forgiveness of injuries recom- 
mended, 172, 174. 

Fornication, forbidden, 218. 

Fulness of God, explained, 192. 



Genesis, the most ancient record 
in the world, 52 ; from which 
ancient philosophers, astrono- 
mers, chronologists, and histo- 
rians, have taken their data, ib. 

Geologists, the folly of many, 389. 

Geometry, no royal road to, ib. 

George III, an anecdote of, 322. 

Ghosts, 404. 



Glenbcrvie, Lord, 23. 

Gluttony, forbidden, 218. 

God, the sole fountain of light and 
truth, 47 ; observed a slow cli- 
max in bringing a knowledge of 
his will to mankind, 56 ; the 
term God defined, 63, 66 ; a 
general definition of, ib. ; a liv- 
ing rational essence, 64; is un- 
derived, ib. ; independent, 66 ; 
is distinguished from matter, 64 ; 
is most excellent, 65; perfect, 
ib. ; unity of, 67; spirituality of. 
ib. ; eternity of, 64, 69 ; omni- 
potence of, 68, 70 ; omnipre- 
sence of, 73; omniscience of, 
65, 74 ; benevolence of, 74, 84 ; 
wills all men to be saved, 76 ; 
will of, 77 ; justice of, 78 ; is 
represented in the Scriptures as 
doing what he only permits to be 
done, 78 ; holiness of, 79 ; faith- 
fulness of, 80 ; infinitely happy 
previous to the formation of man, 
83; perfections of, capable of 
being eternally manifested, 137 , 
no respecter of persons, 141 ; 
must be sanctified, 211. 

Good men, will not sell their con- 
sciences, 347. 

Going to law, condemned, 423. 

Gospel,by it is the cure of sin, 61, 
195 ; is God's method of saving 
a lost world, 62, 118 ; makes no 
allowance for sin, 197. 

Grace of Christ, shines out upon 
all, 118. 

Greece, received the gospel, 49 ; 
government of, despotic, 58. 

Greeks, destitute of the knowledge 
of God, 96. 

Griesbach, Professor, 21. 

Grocer, a, 277, 278. 

Gynceocracy, explained, 283. 



H 



Hall, Rev. Robert, 45. 
Happiness, the seat of, 287 ; 

source of, 391. 
Hearers, of the word, the duty of, 

to pray for their ministers, 330 ; 



432 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



to support their ministers, ib. ; 

directions to, 337. 
Heathen nations, ignorant, fierce, 

and cruel, 96. 
Heaven, in what the happiness of, 

consists, 376 ; duration of the 

happiness of, 378. 
Hebrew mss., examined by Dr. 

Clarke, 51 ; contain nothing to 

strengthen any error in doctrine, 

or obliquity in moral practice, ib. 
Heliogabalus, a supper of, 245. 
Hell, made for the devil and his 

angels, 372 ; no injustice in,ib. ; 

causes of the torments in, 374 ; 

degrees of punishment in, ib. ; 

eternity of its torments, ib. 
Hercules, adored by the Greeks 

and Romans, 72. 
Hiera Picra, the resemblance of 

the censorious to, 175. 
Hmdostan, the devotees of Brah- 
ma and Siva in, 211. 
Holiness, of God, 79 ; man ere-. 

ated in holiness, 86. See Sanc- 

TIFICATION. 

Holy Ghost, the direct witness of 
the, the common privilege of 
believers, 149 ; borne in the un- 
derstanding, 150, 151 ; makes 
intercession for us', 150, 163 ; 
bears testimony to itself, 151 ; 
necessary to assure a man of his 
salvation, 153 ; the witness of, 
has nothing to do with final per- 
severance, 154 ; professed to 
be received by Dr. Clarke, 156 ; 
is God's seal, 157 ; the ambas- 
sador of Christ, ib. ; every good 
man the temple of, 158, 160 ; 
influences of, denied by many 
because they never felt them, 
159 ; is oft excluded from his 
own work, ib. ; produces purity, 
ib. ; represented under the si- 
militude of fire, 161 ; commu- 
nion of, ib. ; an advocate, 163 ; 
may be resisted, ib. ; fruit of, 
164. 

Hooker, an observation of, 183. 

Hope, will enter into heaven, 135 ; 
objects of, in heaven, ib. ; defi- 



nition of, 136, 176 ; a universal 

blessing, ib. ; dead hope, 178 ; 
living hope, 179 ; the soul's an- 
chor, 180. 

Hore, James, Esq., kindness of 
16. 

Hughes, Rev. Joseph, 44. 

Humility, 181, 204. 

Husbands, duty of, 262. 



Idleness, forbidden, 213, 215. 

Idolatry, prostration of, 50 ; for- 
bidden, 210. 

Image worship, forbidden, ib. 

Imagination, the evil, 99 ; cannot 
long support a mental impos- 
ture, 155. 

Importunate widow, parable of, 
241. 

Impress service, 219. 

Imputed righteousness of Christ, 
not found in Rom. iv, 139 ; as 
held by many, unscriptural, ib. ; 
greatly abused, 140; compound 
ed of Pharisaism and Antinomi- 
anism, 142. 

Incarnation of Christ, a great mys- 
tery, no. 

Infidels, rash and bold, have never 
read the Bible, 52 ; confounded 
by God, ib. ; sneers of, 54 ; 
some eminent in arts and sci- 
ences, 101. 

Infirmities, explained, 201. 

Inspiration, direct, 55. 

Intellect, the human, cannot fathom 
the things of God, 47. 

Intercession of Christ, 120. 

Irreverent use of the name of God 
forbidden, 211. 

Italy, received the gospel, 49. 



Java, the followers of Budhoo, in, 
211. 

Jehovah, possessed of infinite per- 
fections, 66. 

Job, 344. 

Joseph, history of, 53. 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



433 



Joy, religions, 176; earthly, ib. 

Judgment, general, awfulness and 
order of, 370. 

Justice of God, 78. 

Justification^ explained, 138 ; pre- 
cedes sanctification, ib. ; is com- 
plete when it takes place, 139 ; 
justification, by faith, one of the 
grandest displays of the mercy 
of God, ib. ; is plain, ib. ; free, 
ib. ; needed by all, ib. ; is 
through the blood of Christ, and 
not by his obedience to the mo- 
ral law, ib. 



K 



Kennicott, Miss, kindness of, 16. 
King, Christ, a, 113. 
Kingdom of Christ, 114. 
Knowledge, man created in, 85 ; 
the importance of, 385. 



Language, confusion of every, but 
that of truth, 62 ; in dead lan- 
guages, the best authors should 
be selected, 329. 

Lavington, Bishop, 157. 

JLaic, signification of, 57 ; a sys- 
tem of instruction, ib. ; aims at 
God's glory, ib. ; among the 
Romans was hung up in the 
most public places, 58 ; called 
by the Greeks, nomos, 59 ; by 
the law is the knowledge of sin, 
60, 127 ; a system of external 
rites and ceremonies, 61 ; a 
spiritual system, ib. ; 't could 
not pardon, ib. ; it ends where 
Christ begins, ib. ; what it serv- 
eth, 127; should be preached, 
128 ; the giving of the, on 
Sinai, 209 ; the folly of going 
to, 423. 

Learning, explained, 299. 

Lepers, ten could associate to- 
gether, 102. 

Life, eternal, given in Christ, 142 ; 
God the fountain and author of, 
217 ; life itself a wonder, 367. 



Light, the emblem of the purkv, 
perfection, and goodness of God, 
79. 

Literary merit, Dr. Clarke's no- 
tions of, 328. 

Littleton's Classical Dictionary, S. 

Lives of the Saints, 54. 

Lord, signification of, 66 ; Christ 
a, 112. 

Lord's Supper, instituted by Christ, 

256 ; unleavened bread should 
be used in the celebration of the, 
ib. ; blessing and touching the 
bread, mere popish ceremonies, 

257 ; the bread should be broken, 
ib. ; a vile compound substituted 
for wine, condemned, ib. ; the 
design of, 258 ; improper com- 
municants, who, 259 ; when and 
how it should be received, 260 ; 
reasons for, 261. 

Love, God's love infinite, 73, 75 ; 
love to God defined, 164; spring 
of all our actions, 167 ; coun- 
teracts the carnal mind, ib. ; the 
image of God in the soul, 168 ; 
preserves all the other graces, 
ib. ; indispensable, ib. ; the es- 
sence of religion, 169 ; enemies 
should be the objects of, 172 ; 
does not cast out every kind of 
fear, 173. 

Lust of power, is diabolical, 424. 

Luke, the facts he mentions, iii, 1, 
2, confirm the evangelical his- 
tory, 53. 

Lying, forbidden, 223. 



M 



Majesty of God, 80. 

Malevolence, none in God, 75, 77. 

Malice, forbidden, 218. 

Man, creation of, 83 ; astonishing 
powers of, ib. ; made in the 
image of God, 85 ; made im- 
mortal, 87; the work of Elo- 
him, 88 ; was adapted to his re- 
sidence and occupation, ib. ; had 
a law, 89 ; fall of, 91 ; effects 
of the fall of, 92 ; born in sin, 94 i 
without power, 95 ; ungodly, 97 ; 



19 



434 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



a slave to liis passions, 103 ; re- 
demption of, 1 14. 

Masters, duties of, 281. 

Materialism, the doctrine of, not 
apostolic, 369. 

Meekness, 181. 

Men without principle will sell 
themselves, 347. 

Methodism, Dr. Clarke's attach- 
ment to, 34 ; reason of the ruin 
of, in Scotland, 262 ; effects of, 
411. 

Methodist preachers, lives of, 33. 

Methodists, the experience of, 159 ; 
do not refer to Mr. Wesley in 
proof of the doctrine of the wit- 
ness of the Spirit, ib. ; profess 
the doctrine of Christian perfec- 
tion, 189. 

Milton, a passage from, 177 ; 
what conscience is called bv, 
396. 

Millennium, the, explained, 425. 

Mining, the dangers of, 350. 

Ministers of the gospel, the call of, 
292, 296 ; qualifications of, 293, 
310 ; the importance of tho 
charge of, 295 ; should not de- 
cry learning and science, 298 ; 
should not preach for hire, 303, 
304; ought to be esteemed in 
love, and supplied with the 
conveniences and comforts of 
life, ib. ; should not intermed- 
dle with secular employments, 
305 ; should not be frequent in 
their visits to the rich, nor be 
lords over God's heritage, ib. ; 
should preach the law, 308 ; 
and avoid continually finding 
fault with the people, 309 ; nor 
conform to worldly fashions, ib. ; 
should be continent of their 
tongues, 310 ; should act with 
great caution, 311, 318; must 
exercise discipline, ib. ; how 
they should endeavour to avoid 
contagion in visiting the sick, 
313 ; trials and comforts of, 
314; should be diligent, 317; 
should be men of prayer, 318 ; 
should be judicious in their 



choice of texts, 319; should 
guard against flowery preaching, 
319, 326 ; a hint to, by George 
III., 322; their behaviour in 
the pulpit, 324 ; should not 
meddle with politics, 325 , 
should baptize in public, ib-. ; 
should administer the LoTd's 
supper reverently, 326 ; evil re- 
ports against, should be cau- 
tiously received, 329 ; should be 
prayed for, 330 ; supported, ib. ; 
are often neglected when aged 
and worn out, 331. 

Miracle, explained, 425. 

Miracles, 49 ; wrought by Christ, 
108. 

Monarchy, explained, 283. 

Mohammedans, 233, 335, 396, 

Mosaic dispensation, 56. 

Moses, he alone gives a consistent 
and rational account of the cre- 
ation, 48 ; his works a general 
text-book, 52 ; prayer of^ 231 ; 
did not appoint musical instru- 
ments to be used in the divine 
worship, 246. 

Murder, forbidden, 217. 

Music, the least of all the liberal 
arts, 33 ; instruments of, in a 
place of worship, repugnant to 
the spirit of Christianity, 245, 
247. 

Mythology, heathen, 8. 



N 



Nachash, 91. 

Nadab and Abihti, 228. 

Napier, invention of the logarithms 

by, 388. 
Nature delights in progression, 

56 ; the idol of infidels, 100. 
Newton, Rev. John, 43. 
Newton, Sir Isaac, 298, 387, 388. 
Nichols, translation of Arminius's 

works, by, 42. 



Oaths, false, forbidden, 211, 2i2. 
Oligarchy y explained, 283. 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



435 



Omnipotence of God, 70. 
Omnipresence of God, 72. 
Omniscience of God, 74. 
Oracles, heathen, struck dumb, 

50. 
Owen, Rev. John, 22. 
Oxen, God cares for, 216. 



Painting, time spent in, 275. 

Papists, a doctrine of the, 205 ; 
God represented by, 210. 

Parable, explained, 425. 

Parents, should be thankful for 
children, 267; duties of, 270, 
276; admonition to indolent, 
272 ; should not strive to pre- 
vent their sons from becoming 
missionaries, 277 ; should not 
make matches for their children, 
279 ; how far they should lay up 
money, ib. 

Parkhurst, Hebrew Lexicon by, 
38. 

Party spirit, the effects of, in po- 
litical matters, 421. 

Pascal, Blaise, 298. 

Passover, the, when and why cele- 
brated, 257. 

Patriarchal dispensation, 56 ; go- 
vernment, 283. 

Paid, St., his charge to the pastors 
of the church at Ephesus and 
Miletus, 297 ; the learning of, 
300 ; call of, to the ministry, 
301. 

Pawson, Mr., 19. 

Pawson, Mrs., her opinion of Dr. 
Clarke, 19. 

Peace, explained, 174 ; to live in 
peace with others often difficult, 
ibid. 

Perfection, Christian, opposed to 
all bad tempers, 142 ; explained, 
182, 184, 197 ; objections to, 
answered, 185 ; not disclaimed 
by St. Paul, Phil, iii, 12, 190. 
See Sanctificatiox. 

Perjury, forbidden, 223. 

Persecution, a proof of the wick- 
edness of man's heart, 103 ; 



should be expected by the right- 
eous, 351 ; should not be co- 
veted, 352. 

Persians, destitute of the know- 
ledge of God, 96. 

Pliaraoh, the character of, 337, 
354. 

Philanthropy, a character of God, 
76. 

Philological Society, Liverpool and 
Manchester, 21. 

Philosophers, the most accurate of 
them, confirm the Mosaic ac- 
count of the creation, 48, 52 ; 
the Greek opposed Christianity, 
40 ; vvere confounded, ib. ; the 
virtue of, 143, 196. 

Philosophy, every Christian should 
study, 387 ; what, in its several 
stages, 388! 

Phocion, the wife of, 401. 

Physiognomist, an ancient, 195. 

Poets, Dr. Clarke's reading of, 33. 

Political party spirit, a disgrace to 
England, 421. 

Polyglot Bible, 16, 21, 24. 

Poor, duties of the, 288 ; blessed- 
ness of the, 290. 

Popes, the arrogance, of, 211. 

Porrus, 21. 

Porson, Professor, 23. 

Power, lust of, 421. 

Praise, the duty of all, 242. 

Pratt, Rev. Josiah, 24. 

Prayer, irreverent, 211 ; defined, 
229 ; parts of, ib. ; long prayers, 
ib. ; technical prayers, ib. ; de- 
sign of prayer, 230 ; mental, 
231 ; closet, 232 ; family, ib. ; 
the object of, 233 ; posture in, 
ib. ; watchfulness in, 227 ; the 
Lord's prayer, 234 ; faith in, 
235 ; the medium of, ib. ; sub- 
jects of, ib. ; efficacy of, 238. 

Precepts, of the Bible, 48. 

Pride, absurd, 181, 205. 

Prideauz's history, 38. 

Priest, Christ a, 112. 

Priestley, Dr., 404. 

Prince of peace, Christ the, 113. 

Principles, general, of the Chris- 
tian religion, 3S0. 



436 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



Profession of religion necessary, 
393. 

Promises, of Scripture, 49. 

Prophecies, fulfilment of, ib. ; con- 
cerning Christ, 53. 

Prophet, Christ a, 112. 

Prophets, the, indebted to the 
books of Moses, 52. 

Proprietors of stage coaches en- 
courage the breach of the Sab- 
bath, 216. 

Protestants, a saying of certain, 
205. 

Providence, universally energetic, 
71, 356 ; mysterious, 357. 

Psalms of David, versified by Dr. 
Clarke, 8. 

Purgatory, the doctrine of, base- 
less, 185, 205, 373. 



Qualifications for a minister of 

Christ, 293. 
Quarks, lines from, 178. 



R 



Rabbins, an opinion of the, 228. 

Rector of Manaccan, 157. 

Redemptionhy Christ, 117, 139. 

Regeneration, necessary, 146 ; the 
effect of a divine energy, 147. 

Reineccius, 21. 

Religion, what, 391 ; profession of, 
393. 

Repentance, defined, 122 ; mis- 
takes respecting, ib. ; confession 
of sin, 123 ; restitution, ib. ; in- 
stant repentance urged upon all, 
125. 

Reprobation, 73. 

Resurrection of the dead, a work 
of God, 71 ; revealed in the 
Scriptures, 371; Christ's proved, 
120. 

Review, Professor Bentley's opi- 
nion of what it should be, 21. 

Rich, dangers of the, 287 ; duties 
of the, ib. 

Righteousness, man created in, 



Rings in the matrimonial service, 

why unadorned, 265. 
Rites and ceremonies, disputes 

about, 174. 
Robes, of the saints, explained, 

143. 
Rmnans, ignorant of God, 96 ; % 

maxim of the, 222. 
Rome, government of, 58 ; church 

of, 248, 250, 301. 
Royal Irish Academy, 25. 
Rulers, what we owe to, 283. 
Rymcr's Fcedera, 23. 



Sabbath, held on the first day of 
the week, 170 ; profanation of, 
forbidden, 212 ; explained, 213 ; 
as a political regulation, wise 
and beneficent, ib. ; why not in- 
sisted on by our Lord and his 
apostles, 214; kept by the first 
Christians, ib. ; a type of hea- 
ven, ib. ; how it should be kept, 
215. 

Sailors, constant peril of, 350. 

Salvation, effected by the power of 
God, 71 ; order of, 148. 

Sanctification, explained, 182; 
entire, must be obtained in th» 
world, 182, 185, 194 ; opposition, 
to, a proof that man is fallen 
from God, 184; effected by the 
blood of Jesus, 185, 189 ; pro- 
fessors of, 186, 189 ; may be 
lost, 191 ; God's holiness a rea- 
son for, 199 ; felicity of those 
who possess, 202 ; believers en- 
couraged to seek, 205 ; not t» 
be sought gradatim, 207. 

Satan, God can destroy the power 
of, 71 ; a speech of, 177 ; 
brought sin into the world, 195 ; 
all other evil spirits under the 
government of, 341 ; fashion 
able to deny the existence of, 
ib. ; deniers of, seldom pray, 
342 ; enmity between men and, 
343 ; temptations of, ib. ; ap- 
palling representations probably 
made by, to Job, 344; wicked 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



43 1 ; 



men led captive by, ib. ; the 
will of man cannot be forced by, 
346. 

Schism, explained, 421. 

Schrevelius, 38. 

Science, first principles of ever)-, 
implanted in the mind of Adam, 
387. 

Scott, Robert, Esq., 27. 

Scriptures, the necessity of the, 
47 ; proofs that they are revela- 
tions from God, 48, 49 ; the 
name generally given to, 48 ; the 
oldest records among the Jews 
and Christians mention the books 
both by number and name, of the 
Old Testament, 50 ; biography 
of, impartial, 54 ; how they have 
been given, 55 ; the use of, 48, 
57, 59 ; intended for all, 62 ; 
directions for the profitable read- 
ing of, 339. 

Self-interest, caution against, 423. 

Sellon, Rev. W., works of, recom- 
mended, 33. 

Servants, duties of, 281. 

Shetland Isles, mission to, 26, 27 ; 
questions relating to, 413. 

Simeon hen Joachi, his description 
of the mystery in the word " Elo- 
him," 81. 

Sin, the power of God can destroy, 
71; original, 95, 101; univer- 
sality of, ib. ; effects of, 98 ; in- 
fection of, 102 ; tyranny of, 103 ; 
besetting, 104, the unpardon- 
able, 105; malignity of, 116; 
cannot be destroyed by suffer- 
ing, 126 ; hid welling, cannot 
humble, 186 ; no necessity of 
committing, 196. 

Sincerity, explained, 198. 

Singers, character of, 244, 245. 

Singing, the abuse of, 244, 245. 

Singularity, not always criminal, 
394. 

Slander, forbidden, 220, 222. 

Slavery, 215, 424. 

Slothfulness, natural to man, 362. 

^Socrates, the force of his philoso- 
phy,^. 

Soldier, a diuni«n, converted, 16. 



Solomon, his opinion of matrimony, 

264. 
So7iship, eternal, of Christ, 381. 
South, Dr., 42. 
Southey, Mr., a charitable hope of, 

157. 
Space, not a part of God, 73. 
Spirit of God alone knows the 

mind of God, 47. See Holy 

Ghost. 
Spiritual slothfulness, reproved, 

362. 
Spirituality of God, 67. 
Stars, paucity of large, 200. 
State of separate spirits, 369. 
Stealing, forbidden, 219. 
Sturms' Reflections, a translation 

of, 20. 
Subjects, duties of, 285. 
Suffering cannot destroy sin, 216. 
Suicide, forbidden, 217. 
Sunday schools, the effects of, 420. 
Superstition, never produces set- 
tled peace, 155. 
Suretyship, evils of, 424. 
Sussex, his royal highness, the 

duke of, 26. 
Swearing, false, forbidden, 211. 
Sympathy, unaccountable, 171. 



Tale-bearing, forbidden, 223. 

Tea, never used by Dr. Clarke, 
14. 

Temperance, recommended, 319. 

Temptation, the process of, 347 ; 
a part of our Christian warfare, 
ib. ; what meant by entering 
into, 348; no man exempted 
from, ib. ; how to resist, 349. 

Theocracy, explained, 283. 

Theseus, 72. 

Time, improvement of, 426. 

Titus, epistle to, contains the duty 
of a gospel minister, 297. 

Tobacco, the abuse of, 404. 

Trances, revelation given in, 56. 

Travellers, constant peril of, 350. 

Trial by jury, a blessing, 286. 

Tribute, should be rendered to 
Cesar- 286, 



438 



INDEX TO CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY. 



Trinity, the doctrine of the, stated, 
81, 380 ; proofs from Scripture, 
81, 82 ; may be collected from 
appearances in nature, 83; 
prayer to the, ib. 

Truth, the language of, never con- 
founded, 62. 

Tuisco, adored by our ancestors, 72. 

Tyranny, explained, 284. 



U 



of 



Unbelief, inconsistency of, 129 ; 

damning sin, 132 ; effects 

ibid. 
Union, among the followers 

Christ, 169. 
Unity of God, 67. 
Unjust Judge, parable of, 241. 
Unrcgenerate men hate religion 

101. 
Usury, condemned, 424. 



Vales to servants, a disgrace to 

their masters, 382. 
Virgil, Eclogues and Georgics 

of, 8. 
Virgin Mary, worshipped by the 

papists, 211. 
Visions, revelation given in, 56. 

w 



H 



tea, 14; ditto to Dr. Clarke, 
17; a saying of, 34, 100; the 
works of, recommended, 33, 45 ; 
thought the Methodists once V'' 
leaned too much toward Calvin- r*4*j g£ 
ism, 141 ; not referred to by the 
Methodists in proof of the doc- 
trine of the witness of the Spirit, 
159 ; his opinion of preaching 
thrice on the same day, 323 ; 
the preaching of, 410. 

Wesley, Rev. Samuel, jun., the 
visits of, to Lord Oxford, 282. 

Wesley, Mrs. Susanna, professed 
to receive the knowledge of sal- 
vation, 157; manner of training 
her children, 274 ; did the work 
of an evangelist, 296. 

Westminster divines, an assertion 
of, 197. 

Whisperers, pests of society, 220, 
222. 

Will, a free principle, 360, 383. 

Will of God, always good, 77. 

Wisdom. See Knowledge. 

Wives, duties of, 263. 

Works of charity should be per- 
formed with cheerfulness, 171 ; 
in private, if possible, ib. 

World, the ignorance of, 48 ; wick- 
edness of, 100. 

Worship, public, explained, 226 ; 
the importance of, 228 ; reasons 
for, ib. 



Walpole, Sir Robert, 347. 

Walton, Polyglot Bible by, 16. 

War, 98, 217. 

Watchfulness, the necessity of, 
362. 

Wesley, Rev. Charles, his charac- 
ter as a hymnologist, 248. 

Wesley, Rev. John, a letter of, on 



Young, Dr., what conscience is 
called by, 396. 



Zeal- for God, recommended, 168. 



THE END. 



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